From Sky to Sea
by Spirit of the Dead
Summary: Silver has been marooned on an uncharted planet. Jim and co. set out to rescue him, but there's more to this world than they thought. Now, they must find their ticket home while battling a ruthless pirate and sea witch, with the help of a strange mermaid.
1. Prologue

Spirit- Hello all! I am Spirit. I'm new to this section of only because I had just recently discovered it. I learned about this pairing a few weeks back from youtube when I was looking up disney versions of "The Other Boylen Girl". "The Little Mermaid" has been my favorite since I was like 3, so I was watching ones with her in them, and then came across a video with her and Jim. I had seen the movie several times and had always liked Jim's character. It never occurred tome to actually cross the two over. But now, here we are. This is my first fic with them, and I hope to write more in the future.

This fic follows the Little Mermaid timeline mostly. And it has been a year after Treasure Planet. I hope you all like it. Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this prologue and I will try to correct future mistakes!

PROLOGUE:

"_I'll tell you a tale of the bottomless blue_

_and it's, hey to the starboard, heave-ho._

_Look out lad, a mermaid be waiting for you,_

_in mysterious fathoms below..."_

A large, very blue planet grew ever closer to the R.L.S Legacy ship. This was a strange vessel, looking like almost any other, except that it was meant to travel in space instead of water. It's sails glowed from it's circuits and reflected the light coming off this solar system's sun, while several jets spat out blue flames in the back, propelling the ship forward. The crew and passengers on board varied in species. Some were rather plain, while others were completely bizarre. Languages of all sorts chorused through the air. Even if you didn't understand what was being said, you could tell there was a bubbling excitement among the unusual beings.

The captain, a strict looking, amber furred, feline-humanoid dressed in a fine blue and gold suit, gazed at the beauty before her ship. Unlike her crew, she remained composed. It wouldn't due for her to bounce around like a silly young kitten, though she did share in their delight. It was good to see this hell of a trip had produced a beacon of light. Her only worry was that more trouble was in store for them. Still, now was not the time for such thoughts.

"Alright Men!" she yelled, calling the attention of the ships crew below her deck. "Prepare to land! I want those new cloaking devices up as soon as we hit the planets gravitation range. Move Now!"

The result was instant activity. The aliens all rushed to there posts and began to ready the large craft for the landing. Looking at the radar before her, she then yelled out the coordinates for where they would be heading to the one steering her ship. Picking up her spy-glass, she gazed through it back at the planet. It didn't look very different from many other planets she had encountered, but she knew not to be deceived by it's appearance. After all, many planets, like this one, housed some of the most vicious creatures and terrains imaginable.

Feeling a presence behind her, she glanced over her shoulder to find her husband. Like her, he was very human like, though his features resembled that of a dull-brown dog. He was dressed rather scholarly, a white dress shirt with a tawny vest over it that had a pocket-watch in the breast pocket. He wore a coat, while small specks were held up by a large nose and his hair at the top of his head was combed back. He smiled at her, but made no other movement. He knew his wife liked to keep up a professional appearance in front of the men.

"What do you think Delbert? We've finally made it." She asked, handing over her spy-glass and facing the new planet again.

He fixed his specks and peered through the instrument at it. "I think we have our work cut out for us. I only hope we can make it back."

Both looked over to the front of the ship on the bowsprit. There stood a young man, staring out at the blue orb as he held onto the forestays to keep his balance. He was pure human, with brown hair that was mostly on the top of his head, while his sides were shaved. A small ponytail was at the nape of his neck. It wasn't as lengthy as his last one, but he hadn't been growing it back very long. His deep blue eyes weren't really focused on the planet, but rather misty. He was imagining what kind of world this one would be, what dangers or treasures it held. It looked like it was mostly composed of water. There were several land masses spaced out over it, but they were few. A small, pink gel like blob suddenly popped up and hovered around him. It's big eyes kept looking at the view then back at the boy. It gurgled and whimpered at him.

The boy gave it a small smile and held up a finger for it to rest on, "don't worry Morph, we'll find him. Silver is somewhere down there." Looking back, he now took the scene in. A determined expression appeared on his face. He was ready, for whatever this world was going to throw at him...

...Deep below those blue waters on this new planet, however, was a world from which even the likes of Jim Hawkins had never seen. Creatures long since thought to be gone from the universe, made their home there. Ones so small, no human eye could see them. Life forms so big they could destroy ships if they wanted to. All living together on the same small planet. And then there was a being, not much different from a human. A hybrid, between man and fish. A being thought, even in his time, to be nothing more than a legend. Merpeople. The torso and head of a human, with the bottom half of a fish. They had lived in secrecy for literally centuries. Under the law set by King Triton, contact with the creatures of land was forbidden. All obeyed this rule,.. all but one that is.

This daring little mermaid had her heart set on learning as much as she could about the world above her own. The world of trees, dryness, and of course, humans. More often than not, she could be found investigating the sunken ships around the rockier areas of the ocean. Her thick, long red hair floating about her like a cloud. Green tail whipping behind her as she made her way around the wreckages. A small yellow fish with blue stripes, flowing close beside her. He looked about nervously as they checked a new area out.

"Ariel, do we really have to be here? You're dad's just going to get mad again if he finds out." He said, slightly trembling.

The girl looked over at him with skeptical aquamarine blue eyes. "Come on Flounder. He's not going to find out, if you keep quiet. No one else ever comes-"

There was a twinkle of light. Ariel raised her hands to shield her eyes, as it flashed again. Narrowing her gaze, she tried to make out where that light was coming from. A gasp escaped her when she finally caught sight of it. It was unlike any ship she had ever seen. It's sails were made of some glossy material that was catching the light and shimmered. Huge round things, were sticking out of the back, as well as longer thinner things that sprung out from the back's side. The materials were completely alien to her. She knew she wasn't an expert on human ships, but all were generally made out of wood, dull metals, and white plain cloth. Never had they seen a ship quite like this one.

Quickly Ariel swan down to it. It had to be new. Barely any barnacles had stuck themselves to it yet, and no algae had claimed it's deck. The girl went right up to the railings. She was unsure if she should touch it. Flounder was hiding behind her hair. He didn't like the way this new ship looked, but was too scared to say so. The fact that it was so different had already drawn his friends full attention.

"I want to look inside of it." Ariel whispered. Not waiting for an answer, she swam around to find a possible hole they could go through. They found one, but it looked odd. She had seen ships that had their sides blasted out by lightning, canons, or get torn open by the rocks. This was different. The hole's edges were smooth, shiny, and deformed, not sharp, charred, and splintering. Cautiously, she peered inside. If there were bodies, as there sometimes were, she would have to come back later. She didn't like looking at them, and Flounder would have nightmares.

Luck was on her side. The ship seemed empty. The corridor she slipped into was just as strange as the rest of the ship. It was entirely made of metal in all shapes and sizes. Some things she did recognize. She had a few gears and pulleys in her collection at her secret grotto. Others were completely alien, and she wondered if she should even take them. The young princess soon found what she guessed was the sleeping quarters for the humans, if this even was a human ship. Again, no one was there. It was odd. Normally she would've come across at least one body in here, this ship was completely empty. Perhaps everyone made it out alright before it sank? A small part of her whispered, "_or perhaps whatever made that hole had melted them all away too."_

Pushing that thought aside, she continued her exploration. She and Flounder came into a new room now. It looked like another sleeping room, except there was only one bed to sleep on and no hammocks. Something was glowing under the bed that caught Flounder's eye.

"Ariel, look at that." She followed his gaze and also found it. Swimming to the ground the two peered under to see what was causing that light. It was a small box that was open. A flash blinded the two for a couple of seconds. It was the same flash she had seen when they had first spotted the ship. So this was the source. The light was coming from inside this box. Gently, Ariel reached out and took hold of it. Pulling it to her, the two peered inside. There was nothing in there, nothing but the light at least. Squinting, she saw there were strange markings all along the box that were causing the glow. It was heavier then it looked too. She could've easily had carried it in one hand due to it's size, but it was made of some weird, very dense, material.

"What is it?" Flounder asked.

Ariel shook her head. "I don't know... but it's so...magical."

Her curiosity got the better of her and she closed the box with the lid that was hinged to it. There was a click and the light immediately vanished. Spots danced before their eyes for a moment. With a smile, she opened it back up, but the light did not return. She frowned, as she gazed into the empty space.

"Is it broken?" the fish asked as he looked inside.

Ariel tried opening and closing it several times, but still nothing happened. "I think so..." she sighed. She hadn't wanted to break the thing.

Flounder hated to see his friend so crestfallen, "...maybe Scuttle can fix it?"

Instantly her face lit up, "maybe he can! We should go see him now." Putting the box into her orange bag, the two made their way out of the ship. They would have to explore the rest of it another time.


	2. Old Friends, New Places

Spirit- Alrighty, here is the second chapter for you all. It's really just focused on Jim and why they are all heading to a new world. Next chapter we'll start jumping into the really good stuff! I hope this chapter isn't too boring, but I really felt it needed to be in here. I hope you enjoy it at least a little.

THANK YOU to SolrSurfr3 and lil maria maria for the reviews!

This fic follows the Little Mermaid timeline mostly. And it has been a year after Treasure Planet. I hope you all like it. Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes!

**88888**

**Chapter ONE: Old Friends, New Places**

~~ 2 Months Earlier on the Planet Montressor~~

"JIM!" came a hysteric voice. Jim, who had been resting on top of the large roof of his family's inn, jumped and sat up with a start. Looking down, he saw his long time friend, Dr. Delbert Doppler running towards the building. A frantic look in his doggy features. Jim wasn't too worried, more so curious. The old Astronomer was always panicked about something, nothing always needing immediate attention. Still, it would be rude to let the man run around like a chicken with its head cut off for too long.

"Delbert!" He called. The man stopped and looked up at the roof. "What's up?"

"Hurry! You have to hear this! It's Him!" He screamed, causing passerby's to stare and mumble to each other about the scene before them.

Jim stared at him wide-eyed, then quickly jumped down. He knew who Delbert was talking about. A name that they dared not say out loud for fear the authorities would overhear. The dog-man motioned for the young human to follow. They raced up the streets, heading to the ships that would take them to Montressor Space Port above the planet. After they boarded and launched, Jim tried to pry any information out of the Doctor that he could. However, Delbert only told him nervously to keep quiet. Unfortunately, there were too many people on the small carrier who could overhear. Like before, they couldn't mention this person aloud.

It took awhile after they docked thanks to the place being busy with people setting sail or arriving from long journeys as usual. Soon they reached the RLS Legacy. No one seemed to be aboard the ship as they ran up the dock. It had just gotten back about a week ago from a mission. Jim hadn't gone on that one, he had been too busy with school at the Interstellar Academy. Right now, was a break between semesters, which was why Jim was at home. Upon entering the captains quarters, they found Amelia, and B.E.N standing near the radio. The two looked up, Amelia's face stern, while B.E.N's was surprised.

"Jim! It's not good..." the crazed android said, looking down at the speaker box. Crackling noises were coming from it. Every once in awhile an inaudible word was spoken through it. He recognized the voice however.

"Silver?" He cried, getting closer. It had been so long since he heard the mans voice. Morph also perked up and floated over to the device looking confused and sad.

"It's a recording. We just received it a little while ago." Amelia explained.

Jim looked over at her. "What is he saying? Were you able to get the full message?"

She handed him a piece of paper. The recording was still playing, and it became more clear as he read what they were able to gather.

"_This is Captain Silver, I'm marooned on an undiscovered planet. Jimbo, come find me. Help me."_

There was something else, but no one could make it out. Jim listened to it several times, but all he was able to come up with was "Ran gloom and different dime pension." That made no sense to him or the others. Even B.E.N didn't understand though he provided several impossible explanations. The young man looked up at his friends, desperation in his eyes.

"We have to save him."

Delbert shook his head. "Jim, we can't just go whisking off like that. These things take time, and you're due to return to school in a week. Not to mention, we'll never get a crew brave enough to go out that far."

"Where is he?"

The captain pulled up a holographic map of the universe, or at least, the places known to the federation. Unlike Jim's old map, that had lead them to Treasure Planet, this one didn't fill the room, nor was it limitless. It covered the length of the table and you have to give it the location you seek. Only then would that area show up. Amelia typed in some coordinates now and the map shifted. Jim recognized the area it brought up. It was a solar system called Pertru 9. It was home to very hostile planets. The beings there were primitive and ate anything that came into it's territory. Crossing that place was easy, since no creature from it was technologically advanced. You just never wanted to stop there.

"The signal is coming from beyond the Pertru 9 system in the Coral galaxy. The place is completely uncharted. We weren't even sure more planets existed there. We'd be flying in blindly since we no longer have your map. We can follow the signal, but it may give out any time. From days too months." the feline explained. "Not to mention, we'd be rescuing a fugitive, who, I'm sorry to say, may not even still be alive. We don't know how old this transmission is."

Jim nodded solemnly. He was trying to come up with a plan. He might have enough money to pay for such a voyage, since he still had some gold saved from their trip nearly a year ago to the planet of legends. But coming up with a reason to convince his friends and tell a new crew would be tricky. Still, he would do anything for the man who was like a father too him. True, they hadn't seen each other since their great adventure, but that was because the authorities were still hot on John Silver's tail. He had probably sailed out so far so as to avoid getting caught. Now he was stranded.

"What if I went alone?" Jim asked.

Amelia gave him a look that made him feel like a stupid kid, "impossible! You need a large, well equipped ship to make it out there Mr. Hawkins. And a large, well equipped ship requires money that you don't have. You wouldn't get even close. And what about the academy? Do you know how many strings I had to pull to get you in for free?"

"But he needs our help! I can pay for most of the expenses at least. Captain, you know he's like a dad to me. More so than my real one ever was..."

"... Darling, maybe we should go." the four looked over at Delbert. He cleared his throat nervously. "Well, it is an uncharted territory. We could say we seek to explore it. I mean we know something must be out there if Silver says he's lost on a planet. We don't have to say the message is from him. If it wasn't for B.E.N, none of us would've know what it said. We'll just say we're going out to find whoever broadcasted this."

"And Mr. Hawkins's schooling?" She asked, folding her arms. She was worse then his mother about such matters.

"The academy does have programs on such things. If Jim tells his professors the same thing, they may be willing to let him go without expulsion. I can help him keep up with his studies on the trip." He reasoned.

"I can help too!" Cried B.E.N

Jim couldn't believe his ears. Delbert, nervous, goody-to-shoes Delbert, wanted to lie and help find a pirate? The man gave a small smile and nod to Jim then looked to his wife for her answer. It all came down to this. The three knew Amelia detested the pirate who had almost killed them all. The fact that he ended up in helping to save them only added insult to injury. If Amelia didn't agree to this, they wouldn't have a way out there. No one else would be willing to lend their ship for such a dangerous voyage.

Releasing a sigh Amelia gave her answer. "Fine." The three men cheered, while Morph did flips and yelled a squeaky "Ya-hoo!"

"However!" all stopped to look at her. "You need to get permission from the school AND your mother, and also see if she can agree to look after the little ones. I will not be bringing our children on this excursion."

She said, glancing at her husband. He nodded, though he wished he could take the four with. Still they were much too young for a long passage in the deep cold of space. Jim was already heading out the door with Morph and B.E.N, he had a lot to do. He knew Amelia would take care of finding a crew since she no longer left such matters to Delbert. Not after he hired Silver's crew to find the treasure. The young spacer needed to quickly inform his school then go see his mother. The prospect of danger was far from his mind. He was going to see Silver again. He was going to discover an entirely different world with his friends. It had been a long time since his last adventure. He hoped this one would be just as exciting.

"Whoo!" Jim whooped as he, Morph, and B.E.N dodged people left and right to get back to the small carriers that would take them back to Montressor.

"Jim! Are you so sure about this?" B.E.N asked, trying to keep up. "Excuse me, ma'am!"

Jim glanced back, "what? Of course I am. He needs my help, and I'm not going to let him down."

"I know, but you may be giving up a lot here."

"It's not like I can't just enroll in school again. And if we do find a new planet then they'll be begging me to stay."

"True... OHHH! This is gonna be so much fun! Me and my buddy Jimmy off on another adventure! Exploring new galaxies and rescuing damsels in distress!" B.E.N continued rambling.

"_Damsels?_" Jim thought to himself. No one said anything about damsels. Rolling his eyes as he continued to weave in and out of people, who either glared or cursed after him, he couldn't help but smile. Morph followed, hovering over his shoulder. It was easy to tell the little pink guy was excited as well. Jim knew he missed the old pirate a lot. He couldn't wait, the whole gang back together again. It would be work keeping peace between Silver and Amelia, but it was manageable. She did, after all, agree to go look for him. A tiny voice in the back of his mind told him that his father-figure may not actually still be alive. What if they got there and never found him?... or found what was left of him?

Angrily, he pushed those thoughts from his head. Silver was alive, he had to keep on believing that. They were going to save him. Boarding the carrier, he looked out at the stars in the sky. It couldn't be that hard. The Coral Galaxy wasn't nearly as far as Treasure Planet had been. B.E.N started going on about who knew what to another passenger that was giving him weird looks. Jim quickly broke from his thoughts to tell the android to shut it. Of course it took a little while for him to actually button his lip but he did eventually. Looking back out the small round window, Jim promised himself, that no matter what, he would save Silver, and all of them would make it back in one piece.

88888

Sarah Hawkins greeted the new customers as they came into her inn. The place was a lot bigger and busier then it had been about a year ago. She was now even able to hire help to run it. After seating the newcomers, and seeing to it that a waiter was able to serve them she went to check how the cooks were doing. Before she reached the kitchen though, the front door flew open. She spun around to see who would enter so rudely. She wasn't at all surprised to see her troublesome son come barging in with two of his pals close behind him.

"Mom, I need to talk to you!" he said, ignoring the customers stares.

With a sigh Sarah motioned for him to go into the office. He rolled his eyes, but obeyed. She had scolded him before about making a scene in front of the people at the inn. The workers all snickered as, defeated, Jim made his way into the room. Sarah gave them a look and waved them off to get back to work. Following her son in she closed the door and locked it. Immediately Jim began going off, B.E.N wasn't helping either in trying to explain why they were there.

"Hold it!" she snapped, instantly the two quieted down. Rubbing her temples, trying to suppress the on coming head ached, she said, "one at a time, and slower."

"Mom, Silver's in trouble. He's on some unknown planet and he needs my help. We're going to go save him as soon as we can." Jim explained.

She looked at him in shock, "what? No, you can't. Jim, you have school now, and a future. You can't just throw that all away on some pirate!"

"Mom, you know he's not just some pirate. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be who I am now, and we wouldn't have this Inn."

"That is not true, and you know that James Pleiades Hawkins! If it wasn't for him, we would've been able to get a lot more of that treasure then we did get." It was a silly argument, but a true one.

Jim's expression changed. She knew that look for she had seen it once before when they had discovered the map to Treasure Planet. "Please mom. I'll talk to my professors. Delbert said they would probably agree since we'll be discovering a new planet. I would just have to report back on it. Silver... he could be in great danger. If it were me, you'd go, wouldn't you?"

Sarah let out a sigh as she massaged the back of her neck. Once again, she could see her son was going to win. It was a noble cause, and she knew that. Not to mention she trusted Amelia to look after the boy, Delbert would too of course. Like any mother though, she just couldn't help but worry about her only child. "Of course I would." she at last replied. "If you do get permission from your teachers, then I guess I'll allow it."

"Yahoo!" B.E.N cried and threw himself at Jim. Jim tried to push him off, but was laughing and too excited as well. When he did manage it he quickly ran up and hugged his mother.

"Thanks mom. You'll see. We'll be back in no time with all sorts of stories to tell you." He said as he, the robot, and Morph made their way to the door. "Oh, and could you watch Amelia's and Delbert's kids while we're away? K thanks!"

"Jim!" his mother shouted back, but he had already rushed out of the room. Groaning in defeat, she shook her head and went back out to check on how the customers were doing.

88 1 Week Later 88

The solar sails of the R.L.S Legacy were released as the ship powered up. Slowly, it lifted away from the docks. The creatures on board began to float, as gravity failed, but with a quick pull of a lever an artificial gravity was created and set them back on their feet, tentacles, or whatever they used to walk with. After giving the command the ship launched into space. The crew watched for a moment, never were they tired of seeing such sights. It was only when their captain began barking orders, did they resume their tasks at hand.

Captain Amelia looked around at her knew crew. They were a hardy bunch, with excellent backgrounds. Some were from her previous crew from 2 weeks ago, that didn't want to miss out on this little adventure. Others were new, but experienced spacers. Laying out the course for the one steering the ship, she went to see how her husband and Jim were doing. Delbert had come to watch the launch and was trying to keep out of the way of the crew. He was failing at that.

"Delbert dear, you really should stay on the top deck." She said, quickly pulling him out of the way of one shipmates path.

"Sorry, I was just trying to get a better view."

Looking around she asked, "where's Jim?"

"Oh, he's probably moping about below. He's not too happy that he's "cabin boy" again." Delbert explained, cleaning his glasses.

The feline couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Oh tish-tosh. I had to put him there, how else would he be useful? Not to mention it keeps the crew from suspecting anything. He should be grateful I'm doing any of this for him."

"Well, I suspect he'll get over it. Especially once we get there. He was just hoping for a better post is all."

"Captain! Everything's shipshape and running smoothly." someone called out.

"Excellent! Carry on." the strange alien saluted her and went back to it's post. Looking back at her husband, she shrugged and went to go see to it that everything in fact was running smoothly. She bumped into Jim as he was coming out of the galley. "Jim? What are you doing?"

"Preparing to swab the deck." He said, revealing the mop and bucket he had in his hands.

She peered at them, then back up at him, "Mr. Hawkins, you understand why I put you in this position again don't you?"

"Not really."

With a sigh of frustration, she rubbed her face and stated calmly, "once we get there, it will be easier for you to slip about to find Silver. I'll be busy keeping the crew entertained with the notion that we are there to explore. Had I put you in a position of power, you would have had to have stayed by me for much of that time. Trust me, it's better for both you and Silver this way." with that she continued with her inspection.

Jim watched her go. The plan made sense, but that didn't mean he had to like it. Still, it wouldn't be so bad. He had B.E.N and Morph for company. Speaking of which, the two came rushing over to him. Morph cuddling up to his face then giving him a lick. B.E.N twirled around the boy as she shouted his name. They were excited that they had finally set off. He smiled, he was happy too.

"You guys ready?" He asked.

Morph shifted into a miniature Jim, "Aye-aye sir!" he squeaked and saluted.

"I can't WAIT!" B.E.N yelled, wrapping an arm around the human's shoulders. "Hopefully we don't come out of this one Horribly Mangled! Ay Jimmy?"

The boy chuckled, "yeah, me too. Now, lets get to work before we get yelled at."

**88888**

Chow!


	3. Treasures Untold

**Spirit-** Here's the next chapter folks! Now I know Eric's name is technically spelled with a "c" at the end... but I had problems with that. My sister's name is Erika (note the "k") so I am very much used to spelling it that way. I kept making that mistake in this story, so in the end I just went with spelling it as: Erik instead. It just caused too many problems for me to keep checking if I spelled it right. Further note: What happens with Ariel is happening at the same time as Jim's bit for now. If there is a change, it will be noted somewhere. Hope you all like this chapter!

THANK YOU to **lil maria maria, Aggressively Hospitable, Spottedleafpaw, and Emilie** for the reviews!

This fic follows the Little Mermaid timeline mostly. And it has been a year after Treasure Planet. I hope you all like it. Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes! If you have any ideas, you may write them to me. I may or may not put them in this story, but I plan on writing another and that one is still in the planning phase!

**88888**

**Chapter TWO: Treasures Untold**

**88 Present Time in Atlanitca 88**

Ariel had not been able to make it to Scuttles' the other day. Sebastian had found her and began yelling how she missed another rehearsal. So for the meantime she had stowed the mysterious box in her grotto. Today she and Flounder could go find the seagull and ask him about it. She knew she had another rehearsal, but it wasn't until later. She could make it back in time.

Once her sisters had cleared out of the room she grabbed her bag and headed to her hideout. Flounder was waiting for her there. Once they grabbed the object they headed out. It took awhile, but they soon breached the surface and headed to where their friend, Scuttle the seagull, resided. It was a clear beautiful day outside of the ocean. The sun was warm, and the sky cloudless. Only a small breeze that carried the ocean's sent was there. Before long they made it to the small rock island that their friend nested at.

"Scuttle!" Ariel called, but received no answer. When they arrived at the rock, they discovered he wasn't home.

"Darn it, we were so close too." Flounder said, splashing the water in frustration. The girl nodded, if only they had been able to see him yesterday. "What should we do now Ariel?"

The red head thought about that. Maybe they could still find him. She knew some seagulls hung out around the rockier parts of the sea. That area wasn't too far from where the sunken ship was too. If he wasn't there, perhaps they could just explore more. Motioning for the fish to follow her, she dove back under and headed that way. This day was not gonna be wasted.

The rockies was an area, that had claimed many a ship. When storms blew in or the tide was high, it was difficult to see were the great protruding rocks were. A small sand bar with lumps of surfaced coral and flatter rock, was located in the middle of these formations. Small pools of water would form when the tide was low and seagulls gathered to feast on the forms of life collected in them. Ariel usually avoided the area, because if the waters were rough she and Flounder would be slammed among the boulders and parish. Today, the sea was calm though, which allowed them a safe passage. Surprisingly, there weren't many gulls about. The ones that were there, were circling in the sky above. Perhaps the pelicans had reached the sand bar first.

Slipping through the rocks, they made it to the middle. Ariel crawled up the shore a bit, but kept her tail in the still water. Looking around she found no birds of any kind gathered about. Instead there was a pile of drift wood that was caught on fire. She watched the flames dance among the logs, completely hypnotized. There was also a bunch of seaweed gathered with a blue cloth over it. If she didn't know any better, she would've guessed it was a bed of some sort. The sight was a strange one. Humans avoided this place as best they could, so who would be camped here. Had another creature made the fire? Or perhaps lightning had struck it?

"Gotcha!" yelled a gruff voice. Before she knew it, a net came down on her. Panicking, she thrashed about, trying to get it off, this only got her more tangled. Flounder gasped, and tried his best to drag it off her with his mouth, but the mermaid wasn't making it easy. Not to mention, a much stronger force was pulling her onto the land. "Thought you could sneak up on me did yah Rangoon? Well this ol' cyborg still has a few tricks up his sleeve!"

"No! Please!" Ariel screamed, fear taking complete control.

The tugging stopped. By now she was completely out of the water, and almost to the fire and bed. Looking through the ropes, she saw at first what looked like a human. However, after a moment she realized he wasn't. His right arm and leg were not made of flesh and bone. They looked to be metal. He was a big man, with many chins and an enormous nose. The right side of his head had more metal on it, and his right eye was a glowing yellow-orange ball. He wore a white shirt with red and green stripped pants. A long brown coat was over these, and a hat topped his head. He gazed down at her in equal shock.

"Well, I'll be... a... a mermaid." He breathed. Ariel shrunk away a little, not sure what he would do to her now. "Beggan' your pardon lass, I meant no harm. Thought you was someone else."

With that he removed the net and backed away, giving her room. He sat on a rock and continued to stare at her in wonder. The red head slowly made her way back to the water, keeping her eyes trained on him. Once she felt the water come up to her waist she stopped. He had made no other movements towards her and was now occupied with putting away his net. He was smiling to himself, which oddly made her relax more.

"So, what's a little mermaid like yah doin' out here? I thought ya'all didn't like lettin' folks know yah was about." he asked, starting to clean a large bowl. His voice sounded casual now, like seeing a mermaid was no big deal or an everyday occurrence.

Ariel wasn't so sure she should be talking to him, though he seemed nice. The man let out a hearty laugh and got up, "where are me manners? The name's Silver, John Silver, at your service." At that he took off his hat and bowed.

She couldn't help but smile, even if it was a small unsure one. "I'm Ariel, this is Flounder," she said.

"Ariel? What a pretty name for a pretty lass!" he bellowed. She blushed at the compliment and muttered a thanks. He sat back down and resumed his cleaning. "I'm wonderin' miss, if you could tell me what planet we be on?"

The mermaid cocked her head and gave him a confused look, "planet? What's that?"

His smile faded, and a look of horror replaced it. He muttered a few things to himself and rubbed his face. Ariel bit her bottom lip. She hadn't wanted to upset him, not after he let her go. The man exhaled greatly, but gave her a reassuring grin, "got myself into a rather tight fix I guess. Oh well, not the worst off I've ever been."

But Ariel's interest was peeked. "Um, ... so what is a planet?"

"A planet, lass, is what we are on now. The ocean and the land, are all on this great round sphere called a planet. And there are thousands more up in that sky." he gestured towards heavens with his metal arm. "I'm from a different planet me-self. My ship crashed here after I was chased by that blasted cutthroat, Rangoon... Actually, I'm from a different part of the universe entirely."

"What's a universe?"

Silver laughed, the little mermaid was over her shyness of the stranger, and he could see that spark in her eyes as she hung on to his every word. "The universe, little fish, is everythin' that is out there. The sun, the stars, this planet, and the next. It goes on forever. Some say there is no end, nor will there ever be. You could sail through space your whole life and continue ter find new worlds out there, with new treasures just waitin for yah."

Ariel gazed up at the sky, she couldn't see the stars, but she knew they were there behind that blueness. The prospect that there were other worlds out there was amazing. Places, bigger and better than this one. She thought the land had it's wonders, but never had she imagined there was so much more than just that and the sea. Flounder was also entranced by what the man was saying. He had been quiet this whole time, floating beside Ariel with his eyes as wide as saucers. Silver continued explaining this new wonders to them. They learned that he was known as what was called a cyborg, half beast or man, and half machine. He demonstrated the many uses of his mechanical arm, which both thrilled and alarmed them.

He talked about what space was like, some of the things he'd seen, and some of the other creatures out there. The two sea dwellers would ask more questions here and there. Silver answered them all as best he could. He had never met someone so filled with a love of life and learning. Even if she didn't know much about the universe, she wasn't entirely uneducated. She told him about life in her own world, and they compared a few things together for a better picture. The man even taught them how to whistle. Flounder picked it up, but Ariel had a hard time with getting the whistle he did when he put two fingers to his lips down.

It wasn't until the sun was nearly set, and the first stars started to appear in the pink, purple, and orange sky that they realized how much time had passed by. Ariel knew she was going to get it from Sebastian for missing yet another rehearsal. At the moment she didn't care all that much. She and Flounder had learned so many new things today, more so then they ever dreamed they would. Silver gazed over at the setting sun. His mechanical eye reflecting a bit of the light.

"Well lass, you'd best be swimmin' home now. Wouldn't want your paps ter worry."

"Yeah." She nodded, paused, then asked, "would... would it be alright if we came and saw you again tomorrow?"

A large smile lit up on the mans face, "Of course yah can lass! Why, it warms me ol' heart that you both have takin' such a likin' to this spacers tales."

The two friends chuckled. They liked the cyborgs strange lingo. "Ok, we'll see you tomorrow Silver." she called and started making her way out of the rocks.

"See yah tomorrow lass!" He called, waving his hat at them.

**88888**

The R.L.S Legacy hovered several feet above a beach. No one could see it, but those on board the vessel. Captain Amelia was just going over the plan one last time to the crew. They were to stay aboard while she, Dr. Doppler, Jim, and B.E.N scouted the woods up ahead. Once they deemed it clear, the crew would join and set up camp. Throwing the cables over, the four slide down them and landed on the beach. Well, except for Delbert, who ended up falling half of the way there. Amelia, with her rifle strapped to her back, signaled for them to move out. Jim also carried a weapon, a small laser pistol that was kept in his belt. They were not to use the guns, unless absolutely necessary.

"We don't need to start a silly war with any intelligent life-forms here." the feline had said. The others agreed. If the creatures here had more advanced weaponry, there was no doubt they would win against 40 something odd spacers.

The group soon reached the much firmer ground of the forest. The place was very rich and green. Animal sounds, and bird calls surrounded them, but none of it was frightening. The place was very peaceful. It gave Jim more hope that Silver was alright. There were far worse places to be marooned on then here. Though he hadn't actually seen what this planets predators looked like yet. Continuing on, they soon found a nice clearing that was suited for there needs. They spread out to make sure nothing else lived near by that wasn't friendly. B.E.N found a stream with fresh water, and Amelia discovered a few edible plants.

They had just regrouped when an odd sound drew their attention. Something was coming their way. Instantly the group hid. Jim, the android, and Doppler, concealed themselves in some bushes, while the captain took to the trees. Weapons out and at the ready, they waited.

A man with black hair and blue eyes soon rode into the clearing on a white, semi-large creature. It had four long, slender legs, a thick body, and a long face. When the man pulled the reigns, it stopped and pawed at the ground, making a strange whickering sound. The man dismounted and looked around. He knew they were there. He must've heard them when they were searching the clearing. It was strange, seeing another human. Not many existed out in space anymore. It was too hard of a life. Jim wondered if this planet was full of them, or if, like his home planet Montressor, there were only a few.

Keeping his pistol at the ready, he watched as the guy ran his hand through his hair. He looked confused. Perhaps, he would give up and leave. However, the larger creature blew through it's nose, seemingly irritated, and began to walk away from the human. "Penny? What-"

Penny had walked over to a bush and stuck her head into it. There was a shriek, and she popped back up. This time, B.E.N's arm clasped in her mouth. "Oh! Bad horsey, bad!" the robot cried, trying to pull his arm back. She just dragged him out further and presented him to the man. "Oh, uh... Hi there!"

Jim smacked his forehead lightly with his palm. Leave it to the android to get them all into trouble. The man stared wide-eyed at his friend for a moment, then began to advance. Jim's instincts took over and he leapt from the bushes, aiming his gun at the guy. "Don't move!"

The man turned on the spot and glared, but made no other movements. "Release my friend, and leave. We don't want any trouble." he ordered.

The man raised his hands, to show he wouldn't try anything, "Sorry, but this is privately owned land. You and your... uh, friend, can't be here." he spoke calmly, his face relaxed with a small, uncertain, smile.

"Alright, we'll leave too. We didn't – Morph? No!" he called, as the pink blob that had stowed away in his pocket suddenly flew out and over to the man.

The guy took a step back, surprised by the little guy's sudden appearance. Morph gurgled and cooed as he looked the guy over. He changed into a mini version of the man and placed his hands on his hips, looking dignified. Surprisingly, the man laughed, and held out a hand to the little transformer. Morph changed back and planted himself on the guys palm. He cooed some more and snuggled against his thumb. Penny released B.E.N and walked over to sniff the pink blob. He sniffed her back, and licked her muzzle.

"What is this little guy?" the man asked.

"Oh, that's our buddy, Morph. Cute little thing ain't he?" B.E.N began to blab. Jim once again hit his forehead. Not even a full day on this planet, and already they were messing it up. "I'm B.E.N by the way, and that over there is Jimmy! Or Jim. He gets a bit touchy with what you call him" the robot went on, whispering that last part as he wrapped a arm around the human's shoulders to bring him close. Jim still heard him, but was trying to figure out a way to quickly resolve this.

"I'm Prince Erik." A prince? Oh great, this couldn't get any worse.

"A Prince?" B.E.N gasped, and began shacking the man's hand rather forcefully. "OH what a pleasure to meet you Princey. Perhaps you can help us? We're here with our crew looking for our friend John Silver. He crashed on this planet a couple of months ago, and we've come from a different dimension to look for the guy. Have You Seen HIM?"

It just got worse.

"That's enough of this foolery!" A voice called from above. Within seconds, Amelia came whirling through the trees, to land graciously on her feet. Delbert also came out of his hiding place, though his coat got snagged and he fell head over heals into another bush. Erik stared at the strange group of... well he didn't know what they were. He wasn't even sure Jim was a human now. The feline placed her gun on her back, seeing as this man was one of high authority. If they killed him, they would have to leave immediately. "Metal man, that is enough of your chitter chatter. Leave the explanations to the less unhinged members of our party."

B.E.N saluted her and went to stand by Jim who glared at his friend for causing such a mess. Delbert, who had finally rid himself of the bush, joined his wife's side and began to calmly talk to the new human. His soft manner of speaking put the man at ease. He explained that they were there to explore this new planet, and to rescue a friend who they had received a message from. That message had stopped playing some days ago, but they had traced it to around this area. Also, the gateway they had come from that led them to this dimension had closed yesterday. They believed Silver may have their way back and once they found him, they could leave. Erik had a lot of questions he needed answered. Though he was shocked by all of this, he took each piece of information in without losing his composure. At the suggestion that they continued this conversation at his castle, Amelia and Delbert asked if they could have a moment to discuss that.

At his nod, they walked over to the remaining members of their scouting group. Erik had offered to show them his kingdom, and help look for their friend. He seemed genuine enough, but they had the problem of what they were going to do with the rest of the crew. Delbert had brought along several wrist watches, that could project a holographic image onto the wearer, and disguise them as another being. However, he had only brought about five.

"Perhaps, the crew can remain in this clearing, if Erik permits it." Delbert suggested to his friends. "Then Amelia, B.E.N and I could use 3 of the watches, and leave two here with the crew in case they need to bring a message to us up at the castle."

"Are we really going to stay with this guy? How do we know we can trust him?" Jim asked.

Amelia snorted, "he's blindly trusting us isn't he? Even after you threatened to shoot him. Mr. Hawkins, if he is the prince of this land, then he should know it well. It would help us greatly in finding that blasted pirate and whatever he used to get himself and us here."

"Not to mention, Erik will be able to explain this world and it's cultures to us, so we have some information to take back." the doctor put in.

"I'm with you guys!" B.E.N cried, earning him glares from them. He shrunk back and laughed nervously. He knew he was still in trouble.

"It's the best for all of us. Agreed?" Amelia asked. Jim and the others nodded, though he doubted that if any of them did have objections that she'd care. She and Delbert went back to talk to Erik. Soon the arrangements were made. Erik was left to go get a carriage to help them with their things while they talked things over with the rest of the crew.

In no time the crew was setting up camp for themselves. The Legacy was docked closer to the beach. They had to save power or they wouldn't make the trip back. The men were more than happy to stay behind and have free time for themselves. They didn't care much for exploring beyond their part of the woods and beach. The captain did threaten to hang them all though, if she came back and the ship had so much as a scuff on it. Leaving two of the more trustworthy spacers the watches, the group grabbed their things and loaded them up on the carriage when Erik returned. The poor human tried not to stare at the rest of the crew as he helped them load their bags. He told them, once they got going, that he had informed a select group of people at his castle of the whole situation. The rest had only been told that they were housing travelers from across the sea for awhile. They had no objections to this, as they were getting rooms and food for free.

When the castle came into view, Jim's jaw dropped. It looked right out of a very old history book. The entire place was made of stone, cut from the bluff it rested on. On one side it was surrounded by a small lively city. People bustled about, selling fish, cloth, and other things. Farmers on the same side, before reaching the town, waved to the prince as they passed. On the other the ocean gleamed and washed up against it's walls. Seagulls cried over head as a sea-breeze brushed their faces. Jim couldn't believe it. This place was so... perfect. He loved the vastness of space, but this little planet was so homey and tranquil, how could you not love it?

Amelia, Delbert, and B.E.N had turned on their disguises before they left the secrecy of the woods. The captain looked like a very polished woman in her mid-thirties. Her short amber hair that framed her face stayed the same, but was now tucked behind two small human ears rather than cat ones. Her nose was pointed and her mouth slightly pinched looking. Her sharp teeth and face fur were gone. She sported an even tan on her human skin. Delberts hair was the same too. His nose was still a bit large, but it was human looking now. His once, gray-brown face fur now had pale skin replacing it with small wrinkles around his mouth, eyes, and forehead. His hands shrunk is size too. B.E.N had gone through a complete transformation. He now looked like a young teenager, mainly due to his height and build. He was skinny, with golden skin that looked like he had got it from being out in the sun all his life. The robot now had a small nose, and huge grin. The golden hair that appeared on his head was cut so short, that it stuck up on it's own and looked fluffy. He had put on one of Jim's spare shirts and pants which bagged horribly on him. They would have to find some that fit better. B.E.N's large green eyes looked around the road excitedly and he also waved to the farmers.

Morph stayed in Jim's pocket. He was napping at the moment, which was a good thing. They didn't need the little guy flying around and alarming the people here. Up the road, was the gates to the castle. The large doors were closed, but smaller ones that were on the larger doors, were open to permit them in. When they pulled in several men came to collect the horse and luggage. After thanking them, Erik, and a very tall, skinny, elder man named Grimsby led them inside. The group was shown to their rooms. The married couple had one to themselves, while Jim and the other two had another. They were invited to diner once they "freshened up".

The main dinning room of the castle was breathtaking. The half of the room that faced West was entirely made of glass to allow the dinners to view the setting sun on the beach and forest. A long maple table was kept close to this for viewing pleasure. On the east walls were beautiful paintings and mosaics of different places and people. Tall, potted plants were in every corner and some even hung from the ceiling. The guests all sat around, leaving the head and the head's right for Erik and Grimsby. The two men soon joined them and sat. Talk immediately followed. The two earthlings had many questions about their odd visitors from space.

"Well you see, we really can't disclose much to you at this time," Delbert started. "We need to get permission from the Galactic Federation. What we can tell you is our goal, and assure you that our presence here will not disturb any peace."

"We may draw up legal documents if you prefer? Ones that will state our existence here to be amicable." Amelia suggested.

Grimsby seemed to ponder this for a moment then looked to the prince, "it is up to you Erik, while your parents are away touring the kingdom."

"Well, I know they'd want them, if it's not too much trouble."

Dilbert shook his head, "not at all sire! We'll have them ready tomorrow morning for you."

"Excellent! Ah! Diner is ready." the older human declared. Sure enough, Carlotta came out wheeling a cart with several plates of food covered with round tin lids. After serving them, and removing the lids she vanished back into the kitchen.

Jim looked down at his plate. It was full of grilled fish and vegetables. Living so close to the sea, they probably ate fish often. The young spacer never really liked fish from other planets, and found, while it was the best he ever tasted, didn't like them from this one either. However, it was the polite thing, so he ate it all. Insulting their hosts, especially ones so powerful, was not a good idea. B.E.N, who didn't eat, just looked at his plate uncomfortably. After whispering to the little transformer in his pocket, Morph snuck out and sat on the androids lap. When the human disguised robot saw him, he smiled and began to pretend to eat, while really just dropping the rich food into the pink blobs wide mouth.

Too distracted by the obvious scam, Jim didn't see Erik get up or come towards them until he sat across from the trio. The two boys jumped when they finally did notice (Morph was too busy eating to care). Erik smirked at them, "sorry, didn't mean to startle you."

Jim threw back his own smirk, "you didn't." he tried to cover, "why are you over here though?"

"Well, the more... uh, matured members of our party are now conversing about my kingdom's laws and cultures." he pointed out. The two looked over and saw that this was indeed true. "Not really my strong point."

"But, it's your kingdom. Shouldn't you know all those things." Quickly realizing he was being rude, Jim hung his head. His Master of Ceremonies at the academy would've punished him heavily for saying such a thing to a monarch. "Sorry your Majesty."

Erik threw up his hands and leaned back, relaxing in a very un-prince like way. "Hey I do, I just meant conversing about it isn't my strong point. Grim is better at that. I'd prefer to go out and show you all. Experience is better to me then sitting around in a room and talking about it. And you can just call me Erik, by the way."

The spacer could see what he meant. He was the same way after all. "Ok, Erik. When do we get to see the kingdom then? I want to look for Silver as soon as possible."

The young prince dwelled on this for a moment. He smiled after this pause and suddenly sat up right in his chair, "I got it! How about you come with us tomorrow on our cruise along the coast? Well, it's not really a cruise, we'll be on a friend's of mine's fishing ship. It's for my birthday. That way you can check the coast lines for any sign of your buddy's ship."

"That's perfect!... But are you sure? It's your birthday, we don't want to take that from you?"

Erik rolled his eyes, but grinned at the boy, "please. It'll be more fun this way. Not like it's going to be a huge celebration. I wanted it this small. There'll be plenty of work too, I don't plan on being princely tomorrow."

Jim had to smile back. He liked this guy. At first he had mused that being a prince meant Erik didn't like getting his hands dirty, but that thought was quickly erased. After getting the okay from Grim, the two humans and B.E.N, then began to talk about the ship they'd be on, how it differed from the Legacy, and what resided on the coast line. They had been so wrapped up in the discussion, which had switched to solar surfers, that the three hadn't noticed when the adults got up until Grimsby tapped his prince on the shoulder.

"It's getting late Erik, and we have a big day tomorrow." he pointed out.

The three boys looked out the window, the sun had long since set and the candles in the room had been lit for some time. "Oh," they said and stood up. Erik nodded to his two dinner companions, "well, see you boys bright and early."

"Can't Wait!" cried the robot.

"Yeah." Jim sighed. All separated to head to their rooms. Upon entrance, B.E.N removed his wrist watch and reverted back to his android self. He let out a sigh as if he had just kicked off his shoes after a long day.

"I like that princey guy. He's a lot of fun ay Jimmy?" he asked as he jumped on the bed, Morph joining him.

Jim was stripping off his jacket and shoes, "yeah. Hey cut that out, what if you break something? I highly doubt we'll be able to afford it and Amelia will throw a fit. "

The two stopped as their friend changed into looser clothing and crawled into bed. They said their good-nights to each other. Morph curled up on a pillow on B.E.N's bed. There were twin beds in the room. The robot himself shut down for the night in a sitting position next to the pink blob. However, Jim lay awake, staring out at the night sky through their large window. He was so close to finding the cyborg now. He only hoped that tomorrow would be full of promise. With that he blew out the candle, pulled the covers up, and went to sleep.

**88888**

Chow!


	4. The Box

**Spirit-** Hello all! Here is the third chapter for you. This one holds a few key elements to the plot so be sure to pay close attention. Not that you'll really need to... I make it kind of obvious. Well I hope you all enjoy it! Getting close to the good parts now, and by that I mean when our two main characters finally meet!

SPECIAL THANKS to** Aggressively Hospitable, Spottedleafpaw, SolrSurfr3, and Beforethedawnbreaks** for the reviews!

Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes! If you have any ideas, you may write them to me. I may or may not put them in this story, but I plan on writing another and that one is still in the planning phase!

**88888**

**Chapter THREE: The Box**

The day was perfect for going on a sea excursion. 'Even on a ship as primitive as this one,' Jim thought as he looked up at the great wooden ship. He felt like he had gone way far back in time (and really he had), but didn't say as much to his companions. Delbert was amusing himself by studying the vessel thoroughly while Amelia chatted with the captain. They were guests on the ship, but the feline wouldn't oblige by that. She wanted work for herself and the two boys while Delbert explored. The captain, a large, stocky man that was balding at the top of his head, agreed. He made her co-captain of the voyage and Jim and B.E.N were confined to aiding Erik wherever he saw fit. The two didn't mind, and they were glad they had some work to do with the prince. He hadn't lied when he said he would be doing just about as much as the rest of the sailors.

It was also nice to see that the crew didn't treat Erik as some prim and proper royalty. They joked, screwed his hair, and punched his shoulder in good humor. After they set sail and most of the duties were done, they even showed the three how to set up the smelly fish nets. When Jim showed that he would do anything the sailors would do too, they warmed up to him. Though they still didn't know what to think of the weird, human disguised robot. Morph stayed with the android most of the time. He had turned himself into a small monkey that lit on the boy's shoulder. Amelia made it clear to the blob he had to stay in that form whenever someone was looking or he would be locked up in a cage for the remainder of their stay. After awhile of watching the boys work, the little transformer got bored and went to play with Max, Erik's big, fluffy, hyper dog.

Several times Jim had to cover for Dilbert. The astrophysicist was making it very plain in his excitement to the crew that they were not from the same planet with how he went on about how antique everything was. Erik helped once too. When Dilbert had asked what they used to find their way around the treacherous sea, the young ruler stepped in. "Don't be silly Doctor, we use the same Northern star that you guys do." he said and pointed to the northern sky.

Jim nudged the dog-man, "Oh, Oh yes! How silly of me... I'll uh... just be over there now." With that he zipped away. The two humans looked at each other and tried not to roll their eyes.

When the men went back to their work Erik whispered to the younger boy, "That was close."

"Yeah... Delbert isn't always conscious of what he says." The guy mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

They were well out to sea by this time and had hauled up their first catch of the day. The boys got back to work, helping with whatever needed doing. Hearing a retching sound, Jim turned to see Grimsby half bent over the side. Apparently, the man was not built for the bucking ocean. Erik commented on how it was a prefect day for them to be out, but Grim didn't seem to share this thought. As the prince helped to tighten a sail, one of the sailors commented that King Triton must've been in a friendly mood.

"King Triton?" Jim and Erik asked.

"Why ruler of the merpeople lads. Thought all good sailors knew about 'im."

Grim commented that they shouldn't listen to this "nautical nonsense". The sailor seemed to be offended by this and advanced on the man. This ended up with him letting go of the fish he had in his hand, it smacked Grim in the face then leapt back into the blue waters below. 'Lucky fish', Jim thought. He and Erik laughed until Grimsby gave them a look. With mumbled apologies they went back to work. However, the two wanted to hear more. When the elder man went to talk to the captains, they asked the sailors more about the merpeople.

"Said to live in the depths of the ocean. King Triton is their ruler and he commands this, and every other ocean here." The red bearded sailor from before told them, "When he's cross, hurricanes and storms blow in out of nowhere to take whatever ship is unlucky enough to be out. But when he's in a gracious mood, the seas are perfect fer sailing!"

"He's said to have a sister. The Sea Witch, some call her. She was banished for tryin' to take the throne from him." another sailor explained to the boys. "Nasty piece of work she is. She's still tryin' to weasel her way into becoming ruler, but ol'King Triton is wiser and more powerful then she'll ever be."

"Does she attack ships?" Erik asked.

The red bearded sailor shook his head, "Nay lad. Doesn't like to bother with such insignificant creatures. I imagine if she ever does get her hands on the trident, King Triton's powerful weapon, then we'd see her ugly face spring up from the depths."

"Has anyone ever even seen these merpeople?" Jim asked. This was just sounding like a child's fairy tale to him. Treasure Planet may have thought to have been nothing but a story at first, but this was a bit much even for him.

"Of course lad!" one man yelled, slapping the boy on the back, causing him to wince a little. "Saw one with me one two eyes. A mermaid. Beautiful she was."

"What'd she look like?" B.E.N asked.

The man rubbed his chin. "Had thick green hair, couldn't see much of her face, but I did see her tail."

Jim wondered if what the man really saw was a large fish stuck in seaweed, but kept that to himself. At that the captain barked more orders and they scurried off to follow them. Erik, Jim, and B.E.N were given the task of checking that all the sails were secured. As they climbed up to check on the top sails Erik asked, "so what do you think? You suppose there really are any mermaids out there?"

"I haven't been on this planet to know much about anything you guys have here. It could be true, but the way those old sailors talk about it, it sounds more like fishermen's tales. Trust me, I like believing in legends, but there isn't even much of a story to this one. Just some king and a witch." he answered with a grin, as he tighten one rope.

"Guess you're right, still it's interesting to think their might actually be merpeople under all that water." the prince comment as he looked below them. Jim shrugged, he hardly cared whether there were or not. Looking towards the mainland, he checked for any sign of Silver. Through-out the day he and B.E.N had been checking the coast line for the pirate, but so far had seen no sign of him. It was starting to wear on the boy's nerves that every time he thought he saw something he would get all fired up, only to find out it was a gull, or a horse, or something else.

After climbing down the three were sent to do several more tasks. Once the captain was satisfied with their work he allowed them time below to eat and nap if they so pleased. The two humans ate together while B.E.N stayed above to proceed in searching for any trace of the cyborg with Morph and Max. Erik saw how melancholy his new friend had become and started to joke with him. They spent their lunch trading comical stories about their friends or family. The cook eventually kicked them out when he wanted to get on with his cleaning. After checking to see if they were needed for anything else, Erik decided to take a nap. Jim didn't feel much like sleeping so he climbed some of the shrouds half way and sat to watch the waves.

It was calming, though not as calming as his solar surfer. Amelia made him leave it behind back at the castle. He had wanted to show it to Erik, but the feline had forbidden it. The rest of the crew didn't know they weren't from Earth, and they needed to keep it that way. Perhaps he could take the prince out another time. He really wanted to introduce him to Silver too. He knew the old pirate would like the guy. Catching himself, the spacer quickly brushed any depressing thoughts out of his mind. He hated brooding so much. It wasn't him, and he had done enough of it on the trip there. Deciding he needed work, he went in search of the captain to give him something, anything, to do.

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Ariel and Flounder had just snuck out of the palace again to go see Silver. The mermaid's sisters were all busy getting ready for something, but Ariel couldn't remember what they were up too that day. Perhaps they were going on a group date? Unlike herself, her sisters were always searching for a nice young merman to whisk them away and get married. The redhead felt she and a few of her other siblings were too young for such things, but if it made them happy to spend 3 hours in front of the mirror only to go out for two then so be it. She on the other hand wanted to have adventures, and see new worlds. More so now that she had learned there were more than a billion other places out there.

Making it past the guards at the gates, the two friends decided to take a short cut today and go through the ship graveyard again. Ariel had forgotten to mention the strange ship they had discovered to Silver, and ask him if it was his. Flounder bet it was since both the ship and the man were so different from any others they'd seen. They also brought the strange box with them as well, in case it was something important to the cyborg. Not to mention, they desperately wanted to know what in the seven seas it was.

Soon they passed the strange ship. The mermaid slowed down and looked at it again. Perhaps they could find more of Silvers things and bring them back to him. Pulling on Flounder's fin to stop him she motioned for the little fish to follow her. She dove as her friend rolled his eyes. He really didn't want to explore the ship again. It gave him the creeps. Still, he followed his friend as fast as he could, calling for her to slow down. Ariel swan around the mast and giggled when Flounder finally caught up. Going to the deck the two looked around for anything interesting. Finding nothing there, they headed through an open door that lead to the captains office. Surprisingly the deck and this room looked much like the others they'd seen. Both were constructed of wood instead of the weird metal. The two separated to cover the room quicker. There were books on shelves and the floor, useless now that the water had washed away most of the words. Paper maps had the same problems, the colors blending together, making it look like a child's art piece.

"Ugh, there's got to be something in here." Ariel muttered as she scanned the floor.

"Maybe anything special will be hidden somewhere? How about we come back later... or never?" the little fish suggested.

Ariel smiled and nodded, "you're right! Check behind all that stuff on the shelves. I'll look over here, and stop being such a guppy!"

With a defeated nod the two continued searching more deeply. A shadow passed behind them as they worked, going unnoticed by the princess. Flounder, however, sensed it and spun around. "What was that?" he whispered. Ariel was distracted by something golden that resembled a clam on the floor near the desk. She swam over and picked it up. It looked like it could be unlatched and she tried to dig her nails into the small space to pry it open. "Ariel..." came her friends worried voice.

"Flounder, relax. Nothing's going to happen." two seconds later, there was a crash and Flounder's screams that they were going to die. A large shark had charged through the glass window and was now pursuing the little fish. Flounder swam into Ariel's arms. She kicked her fin at the desk, knocking it into the shark's way. While it was occupied with that, the two swam out of the door and headed to the surface. If they made it to the rocks, the shark wouldn't be able to catch them. His bulk was too much to weave in and out of that area without getting stuck somewhere. The two broke through the water and looked back. The shark was right behind them.

Wasting no time they swam as quick as they could to the rockies. Ariel was able to swim in between one very large protruding rock and one smaller one, Flounder however, wasn't so lucky. He had chanced a glance back and rammed into the smaller rock, knocking him silly. Ariel turned to see him floating on the other side of the stone in a daze, the shark descending upon the little fish rapidly. The mermaid launched herself onto the rock and grabbed her friend. She slid back into the water, just as the shark landed on the rock and snapped at them. He only had to thrust himself off it, then he'd have the pair. Ariel held Flounder close to her and stared in horror at those rows of teeth as the sharks muscles tensed for the final leap.

He never got the chance though. Before he could hurl himself at them, the rock beneath him exploded. The mermaid shielded her friend and closed her eyes to avoid anything from getting in them. Their pursuer was blasted backwards and landed on the water with a loud slap. It submerged, but resurfaced again. Shacking the lights from it's eyes, it snarled and went back under, swimming away and out of sight. Flounder had snapped out of it in time to witness the strange miracle. He and Ariel stared at the spot where the rock had been. The surfaced part was completely gone, letting the water wash over it's new, submerged jagged top.

"Yah alright lass?" came a voice from behind. The two jumped and spun to see Silver standing above on one of the taller rocks. His mechanical arm had changed into something that resembled one of those iron things on a ship that blasted smaller iron balls at opposing vessels. His golden eye, was also opened all the way, but by the time he made it done, it was perfectly round again.

"Silver, how did you?" Ariel started.

The man patted his cannon like arm, "tis thing isn't just used fer cookin' lass. Next time, whistle for me if yer in a fix, I'll come runnin'. What sort of trouble did yah get yerself inter anyway?"

"We didn't start it! He did." Flounder protested. "All sharks are, are big bullies."

Silver laughed at that and made his way back to the camp. The two sea dwellers followed from the water. Coming around the bend they found his make-shift home and settled. The cyborg had moved things around. Probably had to take shelter in his longboat when the tide rose. The man settled onto a rock he used for a chair and added more drift wood to the fire. His mechanical arm changed back into one that resembled more of a hand again.

"Yah sure like roamin' these waters don't yah lassy?" he asked.

Ariel smiled and nodded, "Flounder and I are always going off on adventures. We love it!"

"Well she does, I don't like being chased around by sharks as much." the little fish put in, causing the man to laugh again.

"Aye, that does put a damper on tings." looking at the mermaid he smiled kindly, "yah remind me a lot of me son, Jim, or Jimbo as I call him. Not really me son, but I took him under me wing a long time ago when we was off findin' treasure."

"Really? What's he like?" Ariel asked, resting her head on her folded arms. She was half lounging on a raised coral patch.

"Sharp as a tack that boy. Always tinkerin' away on somethin' new and dangerous for him to ride. But he's got the makings of a great man in him. One of these days he'll be the captain of his own ship, mark my words. And what a grand captain he'll be." Silver exclaimed. The princess couldn't help but smile. With the way he talked about him, Silver really did see this Jim as a loving son. He went on explaining that Jim looked more like a human, and that he came from a mining planet called Montressor. "You two would get along swimmingly I bet."

Ariel and Flounder giggled at the man's obvious joke. They liked how he poked fun at such things. Hefting her bag up a bit, the girl then remembered. "Wait, I forgot to ask you yesterday. You're ship that crashed, did the sails glow and was it made of mostly metal?"

"You've seen it lass?" He asked, sitting up right.

She nodded, "We found it a few days ago." Her face fell a little, "it's at the bottom of the sea."

His expression fell too and he rubbed his chin in thought, "oh, that is a problem t'aint it?"

"But we found a few things! And if you need us to go look for more we can." she hastily added, not wanting to upset her friend further. Reaching into her bag she pulled out the box. "Here, is this yours? It was in the ship, and a light was coming out of it."

Silver's eyes went wide at the sight of object. "Blessed be... I had thought it was destroyed in the fight." The red head looked down at the box in her hands, then placed it on the sand and scooted it over towards him. The cyborg got up and walked over. Ariel and Flounder swam back a bit. They liked the man, but it was hard to fight the instinct of not knowing if he would attack them.

Silver picked up the box and gazed at it for a moment. Opening it, he gave a questioning look. Once again, no light had appeared inside the thing. Rummaging in his coat pockets he soon produced a small metal object. The other two had seen ones like it before. Scuttle called them "Dillies", they opened anything you wanted. His was very pretty, cravings decorated the handle and it was a shiny silver color. Closing the box again, he stuck the dilly into a small hole and turned it. There was that clicking sound again, like when they had first closed the box. This time when he opened it, the light returned. Not only that, but a small ball of it broke off and shot up into the sky. It rose so high, that soon it was out of sight.

"We'll I'll be... it still works after all." Silver said with a grin, but then he frowned. Twisting the dilly, he closed the box again. This time he put hung small piece of metal off a thin rope and tied it around his neck where it disappeared under his shirt. He then looked down at the girl. "Lass, I need yah to do me a favor. I can't keep tis t'ing with me, it's too dangerous. Will yah guard it for me? Make sure, no one else gets ahold of it until I'm ready."

Ariel took it back, clutching it to her chest, "sure, but... what is it? Why is it so important?"

After a moments pause he answered, "remember when I said I was from another part of the universe?" when she nodded, he continued, "well, your pretty planet is... in a different dimension from my own, or even all the galaxies I've ever been ter. If I lived for a thousand more years, I still would've never have made it here. That chest is what brought me here. It belonged ter Captain Rangoon, though I'm not so sure he was it's first owner. A nasty pirate, who doesn't much care for the spoils of a world, but it's demise."

Ariel gulped, while Flounder hid behind her hair. Silver went on, "He goes to other planets and tries to unhinge everything. He does steal what he can, but not always is it gold or riches. He steals some of the ones livin' there and sells them as slaves. He gets what ever type of weaponry he can find and sells that as well. It was he, that run me off course. I had a run in with him several months back. I was able to steal this chest and would've made off with it. I thought it had carried treasure. That's when I discovered what it really was. He used that chest to make it ter worlds in other dimensions, most likely to do what he did best. Stealin', killin', and tradin'. Not too many people know about him cuz he never did these things in our worlds most of the time. People didn't know where he got all of it, and no one bothered ter ask. No one wanted to end up bein' next"

Going back to his seat, he set himself down and stared into the fire, "He's followed me here lass. He blew that hole in me ship so now I'm stuck here. I tried callin' for help from my lifeboat that's on the other side of tis little island, but no one's responded so far. While that chest is opened and turned on, it opens a gateway to this dimension. While it's closed, no one can go in or out. It's best we keep it turned off so Rangoon doesn't slip off before I get the chance to commandeer his ship."

"Is he still here though? You said you crashed here months back and it has been on all that time. We only turned it off two days ago. He could've left before then." She stated.

Silver shook his head and smirked, "not without that, he won't" he said, pointing to the chest. "I was hopin' Jimbo would make it here, but it's been too long. Perhaps he couldn't find a crew ... or maybe he forgot about this ol' scalawag."

"I don't think so!" Ariel quickly stated. Silver looked over at her quizzically. "...I'm... I'm sure he's trying to make his way here right now." She said, looking down at the chest.

"It won't open the gate so long as it's turned off lass. I'll be keepin' the key to it, that way if Rangoon actually does manage to catch either of us, it will be useless too him. Besides, I don't want Jimbo risking his life again fer me." he tilted his hat to cover his eyes, as he lounged back against some of the rocks. There was a long drawn out silence, before the girl remembered something else.

"Well... do you want to keep this then?" Ariel asked, producing the golden clam thing she found on the ship a little while ago. She had managed to slip it into her bag before Flounder had swam into her arms when the shark attacked.

Silver titled his hat back up and looked at it. Smiling he held out his hand. The mermaid tossed it too him and he caught it with ease. Pressing a small golden notch on the side it popped open. A strange, transparent image popped out of it and moved. It was a boy, riding on a strange board with a small sail. The image changed to him in a uniform and he was bowing. Next was the same boy close up, the wind whipping through his odd haircut as he stared out at who knew what deeply. Silver smiled warmly at the image, the first one popping up again.

"Who is that?" snapping out of his daze, Silver looked over at the mermaid who had moved to the sand bar for a closer look. Grinning he got up and went over to show her and her friend. "This, lass, is Jim. His mother sent it to me awhile back. It's a hologram locket. It records a moment in time and plays it back again when you want."

The girl gazed at the device and the images in wonder. Jim certainly was handsome. She giggled when the image bowed to her. When it repeated it's cycle again, the man closed it. He then handed it back to her. She took it and looked at him questionably. "It wouldn't due if I lost it again, or Rangoon found it on me. Keep it safe too lass. Just don't open it under water. That'll short it out and it won't work again. You only have to press this little button to open it."

"Are you sure? He is your son." She asked, holding it up to him. He shook his head and curled her fingers around it.

"Nah, besides," he said, walking away. He lifted his head to the sea breeze, "there's a storm a comin'. I can feel it in these ol' bones. I'd definitely lose it in that. I'll be making for land to wait it out, but I'll be back once it clears. Tis little hide-away is perfect from keepin' out of Rangoon's sight."

"If you say so." Ariel looked at the sky. It didn't look like a storm was approaching. There were a few clouds, but nothing that resembled the ones that let loose water. Some seagulls cried overhead. They were talking about something they had heard from the dolphins. Something about a concert.

Ariel gasped, "oh no!" Both Flounder and Silver looked over at her in alarm. "The concert! Oh my gosh, my fathers going to kill me!"

Quickly she put her trinkets back into her bag. Flounder looked equally shocked, asking her if that had been today. "Sorry Silver, we have to go! See you tomorrow!" she called as she and her friend made their wave out of the cove.

"Sure t'ing lass! You be careful goin' home now!" he called, watching her swim off with a grin. Shifting his eyes to the sky again, he shook his head and began to gather his things. He had to make sure he reached the mainland in time to find a place that he could take shelter in.

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"Hmm... now this is veeeeery interesting." The image of Ariel and Flounder making their way back to the underwater city was lit up in a small levitating orb in a dark room. Two eyes glowed as they watched the young princess. They had witnessed much of what had went on at the surface. "This will be fun. Flotsam! Jetsam!"

Once she had her pets attention she continued, "I want one of you to keep a close watch over this daughter of Triton. The other will fetch me this Rangoon. I believe I know where he is."

Sliding out into the light it was reveled the speaker was a large, purple skinned, woman. Her short white hair stuck up and had some darker gray streaks, and she wore heavy blue and green make-up on her eyes. Her bottom half was not like that of a mermaid. Instead of a fish's tail, she sported an octopus's many tentacles. These flexible limbs helped her to swim around and appear to walk on the floor. She made her way over to a cabinet and opened the doors.

"So, Triton's daughter is having relations with an alien who is from a completely different dimension! Oh this is rich! The girl may just be the perfect pawn I need to defeat that blasted oaf of a king. And that device! I simply must have it! With it I could rule not just this ocean or this world, but many more!"

Looking through that cabinet, she found exactly what she needed to locate this fiendish pirate the cyborg mentioned. In a glass bottle was a strange black bug that glowed ominously. She headed over to the strange caldron in the middle of the room. Chanting a spell in Latin, she threw down the bottle, breaking it. Black smoke billowed out, as the mixture rumbled. The cecaelia continued chanting until the smoke gathered and formed a small black ball. "Go! Show my poopsie where Rangoon is!"

The ball whipped out of her dwelling and took off out of sight. Smiling wickedly, the sea witch returned to her perch to wait out any further news from her eel companions. Taking a quivering shrimp from a cleaned out clam, she threw it into her mouth and gobbled it up. After smacking her lips, her eyes danced over to the strange, weed like creatures at the entrance to her room. They shuddered and shrunk away from her stare. With a smirk she then hissed, "let the game begin."

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Chow!


	5. Part of Those Worlds

**Spirit-** Hello darlings! Hope you're all doing well. Here is the fourth chapter for you. This one and the next one are a bit long just so you know. I thought about splitting them up, but that didn't quite flow right, plus it meant more chapters where our two heros were still separated so I just kept them as really long ones. I didn't think you guys would complain much though. However, they both also jump around a lot, which I apologize for. That was another reason I wanted to split them up but that seemed to make it worse . Again, I'm sorry if it's a bit hard to follow or annoying. Hope its not!

SPECIAL THANKS to** Aggressively Hospitable, Dirty Chiban 2 **(I feel so honored! ^v^) **and Beforethedawnbreaks** for the reviews!

Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes!

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**Chapter FOUR: Part of Those Worlds**

A little ways from the city of Atlantica was Ariel's and Flounder's secret hide out. A grotto, that only they knew of. It was here they took refuge after being scolded by King Triton for missing the concert AND going up to the surface. They were only thankful he didn't find out the nature of their visit to the world above, however they had still gotten into a lot of trouble for it. Ariel lay on a protruding stone that was in the middle of the floor in her rounded out sanctuary. She was fiddling with the locket Silver had given her. She wished she could open it underwater, but didn't dare. The girl was thinking on what the king had said. Her father's stupid rule about not interacting with humans was just that, stupid. Though Silver wasn't human, he was kind and very caring. He had even saved them from that shark when he didn't have too.

The human world could be a horrible place, but what about other worlds? Surely not every place but Atlantica was bad. She wanted to see the stars close up. She wanted to go off with Silver on adventures in space, fight pirates, and find treasure. Did space have storms like the ocean? Could she swim through that dark place as if she were in water? The little mermaid wanted to learn more, see more, of what was out beyond that blue sky.

"Ariel, are you ok?" asked Flounder as he swam around her.

She let out a sigh, "I'm tired of this ocean Flounder. We've discovered everything it has to offer. My father may be right or wrong about the humans, but he can't possibly know what it's like in the whole universe. Not everything... can be bad."

Ariel looked around at her collection of human artifacts and began to sing. She sang about how she may have had everything, and yet it wasn't enough. She wanted to go up on land, experience things there, and then see what was further from that. Her song filled the grotto, as she continued to express her feelings about the worlds above. The princess wished she could go out there, at least for a little while to see what it was like. To dance, to feel the heat of the sun on her legs, or rush of the air in space. Swimming up to the small opening at the very top of her tall hide-put she reached out towards the tiny white lights in the sky, that she could just barely see through the water.

"Out of the sea... Wish I could be...Part of those... Worlds." she finally ended.

Flounder watch her sadly as she floated back down. The two were silent for a moment until a loud crash from behind startled them. The little fish instantly hid inside a helmet and peered out through the visor. Ariel looked around, until she saw the source of the nose. A little red crab was covered in some of her items, a snarfblat sticking out of his mouth.

"Sebastian?" she cried. How did he find them here? Had he been listening this whole time? She cringed at the thought.

Trying to fight his way through the other worldly possessions he asked her what all of it was. Shyly the mermaid replied that it was nothing more than her collection and waited for the inevitable blow-up. The crab picked up a hook and seemed calm about it as he verified this information. However, he quickly lost his cool, "If your fada knew about dis place-!"

Flounder hurried from his hideout and swam until he was half an inch to the crustacean's face. "You're not going to tell him are you?"

Ariel begged him not to, saying her father would never understand why she had all of these things. The crab sighed and gave her a smile that made her feel like a kid again. He said she must've felt like she was under a lot of pressure and that she should go with him back to the palace to sooth her nerves. However, the little mermaid had become distracted by a shadow that had suddenly formed over her grotto. She mumbled to herself and then pulled her hand free from the crab. Sebastian and Flounder watched her swim out of the hidden entrance. The fish instantly followed her, leaving a confused crab to shake off from his stupor and try to catch up.

When the girl emerged from the water she was shocked to find colorful lights bursting over a ship to light up the night sky. They looked like exploding stars of all sorts of colors. Her two friends soon caught up to her. Flounder was just as entranced as she was, but Sebastian looked like he was about to have a heart attack. The girl giggled as more of the lights popped in the sky, creating small bangs that echoed slightly. She wanted to get a closer look and immediately dove back into the water only to leap out again as she made her way over to the vessel. Sebastian tried to call the girl back, but to no avail.

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When Erik had awoke from his nap, thanks to a loud banging, he realized it was already dark. Why hadn't any of the crew woken him up? He told them he wanted to be of as much help as possible on the fishing trip. Sighing he got out of the hammock and retrieved his boots. He would just have to have a talk with the captain about this. Making his way to the door he opened it and found the hallway to be deserted. That was strange, but maybe the crew was busy above. However, as he got closer to the stairs that lead to the decks, he realized he didn't hear anything either. No shouts from the captain or talk from the sailors. Max was even being quiet, where ever he was. The prince didn't like this.

Slowly he crept up the stairs and looked around the lower deck, it was completely deserted. He got off the steps and looked around. Suddenly a blue firework lit the sky, a few more following it. He spun around to face the quarter deck. Everyone had gathered there and shouted "Happy Birthday Prince Erik!" when he noticed them. A table was laid out behind them with food and pastries. A band started playing as Captain Filius and Grimsby walked down and shook hands with the stunned man. He smiled at them, but was still a little shocked and confused.

"Grim, I thought I said I didn't want a large party?" He asked, finally shacking off his surprise.

"This isn't. Just the crew, Lady Amelia's group, and us." The cunning old man pointed out. Erik couldn't help but laugh.

The sailors spread out and the party commenced. When Jim went to wish Erik a happy birthday, the prince raised a brow at him, "you didn't know they were planning this did you?"

"Not until an hour ago when they needed my help setting up." he replied with shrug but wore a wicked grin, "I thought it was cool of them to do this for you though."

"Yeah," Erik responded as he finger-combed his black hair and watched the men, "guess you're right."

A sailor handed the two a pint of grog each. They tried to give it back, but the large man told them to relax and have some fun. They needn't get sloshed, but loosening up never hurt anyone. The two looked at each other, shrugged, clanged their jugs, then took a swig. The sailors cheered then laughed when the two made faces at the bitter taste. Erik was used to drinking lighter beers or wine, and Jim had only tried the stuff once before as a kid. Still, the boys drank a little more, but decided it was best to only have one for the night. They could see several men were already on their seconds and were getting a little clumsy. Others were dancing or singing old hymns about the sea. Dilbert had convinced his wife to dance with him and the crew made room for them on the lower deck. They whistled and applauded the couple.

"I have to admit, this is nice." the taller boy said.

Jim just laughed as Morph the monkey, began to hop around on Max's back. The dog was prancing around the sailors feet while barking at them. The spacer couldn't help but kick back and have fun. The ship had pulled out further to sea. They could no longer see the shore line, but now that the sun had set they wouldn't have been able to see it anyways. No sense in trying to search for his surrogate father now. With a content sigh he said, "I think we need more parties like this throughout the year back home. School nearly killed me those last months."

"What do you learn up there anyways?"

"How to function several different types of spaceships, what planets are apart of the federation, and what they're like. You know, terrain, languages, things like that. Then of course, lots of math, lots of science, and very little history and literature." He explained, making a face at the last bits.

"Hmph, sounds like fun." the prince joked. Jim punched him playfully in the arm, causing the guy to spill his drink some. They had become close friends throughout that day. It was almost like having a brother. The spacer wondered if he would end up with family where ever he went from now on. At school he had a few friends, but none were really close. It was hard to be when you weren't always assigned the same missions and were sometimes out for months on end.

At that Erik decided to join the dancing. He called for Max and Morph who were looking out of one of the drain holes. The dog heard the whistle, turned and bounded over to the prince. Morph hung onto the larger animal and giggled, he looked back and waved at something, but Jim didn't really see what it was.

'Probably a bird.' he thought as he got up to drag B.E.N away from the captain, who was beginning to look annoyed.

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Ariel had just been licked on the cheek by two strange creatures that had caught her spying on the people on the ship. She had managed to pull herself up to a ledge and peek through a hole on the decks side. The celebration looked like fun and she wished she could join in. Especially when she saw the handsome man the two furry creatures had raced over to. He was a tall, dark haired human with a very regal voice. She had never seen someone so beautiful in her life. He played a snarfblat that sounded ten times better then the one she had back at the grotto. Sighing, she continued to watch the man as the animals jumped around him.

"Hey there sweetie! Where have you been these past couple of days?" Jumping slightly, the mermaid turned to see a seagull hovering over her.

"Scuttle be quiet! They'll hear you." she whispered harshly and tried to wave him away before she turned back to the scene. She hadn't noticed he didn't fly away until he popped up under her hair, also peering at the party. He said something about them being intrepidaceous then yelled at the top of his lungs. She clamped his beak and dragged him back down. Luckily, no one had noticed the crazy bird. Resisting the urge to toss the gull away she turned back to the man she had been admiring. She admitted to the bird that she had never been this close to a human before. She wasn't sure Silver counted since he was a cyborg and not from this planet. When she asked if he thought the human was handsome as well, he said that the guy looked kinda small, fuzzy, and too bouncy. Realizing he was talking about the little creature that was still on the fluffier one's back, she shook her head.

"Not that one. The one playing the snarfblat."

Suddenly an elder man called for silence and the music and dancing ceased. He named the man she had been examining Erik. It was a nice name and suited him, she thought. The elder man then motioned to something rather large that was covered with a cloth. There were cheers and the gentleman removed the cloth. It was a statue that looked like Erik, only dressed more sovereignly and holding a sword in one hand while the other she at his chest, his hand balled into a fist. It amazed Ariel how they were able to get the detailing so prominent and accurate on stone. However, it didn't seem to thrill Erik as much as it did her. Even his fluffier companion emitted a growl while the smaller one hissed.

Erik rubbed his neck as he looked at it and answered his comrades question as to what he thought about his gift. "It's ah... well. It's... really something... What do you think Jim?"

"Jim?" Ariel whispered to herself.

At that a boy a little shorter than Erik stepped out of the crowd. The mermaids face lit up. It was him! Silver's Jim! The one from the locket she had. He was here on this planet! Had he come in search of the cyborg? She hoped so. Oh this was great! The girl couldn't believe her luck, and instantly a plan started forming in her head. She needed to find a way to get the guy alone so she could tell him where his father figure was. Then they could go get him together!

Her excitement settled after awhile and she studied the boy more closely. She liked how casual he appeared compared to the rest of the crew. He was also much more handsome in person, she had to admit. Not as handsome as the prince, but he had his own thing going for him. Where Erik was poised, classic, and had the air of royalty about him, Jim had charm, spunk, and an obvious love of life that intrigued her.

Giggling as Jim threw a glare at the prince and tried to compliment the statue, she tried to get a closer look at him. However, the elder man had said something to Erik and he began to walk her way. Instantly she pulled back from the hole and kept herself as close to the wooden side as possible. It would be too risky to jump back into the water now. He was sitting and leaning slightly over the railing, making it so he would be able to see if she tried it. The prince was talking about finding the right girl for him.

"-without a doubt. It'll just.. Bam- Hit me! Like lightning!" at that an ominous thunder rumbled through the sky. The mermaid looked up. Storm clouds had rolled in out of no where. Was her father angry again? Did he discover where she was? No, he couldn't have, he was busy with the council today. Besides, Silver had said he that he had felt a storm coming several hours ago. This was natural, it had just snuck up on them when they were distracted by the party.

Looking back at the men she saw they were running around the ship now. Others were shouting orders from the top deck, and both Jim and Erik were lost from her view. The winds kicked up then and were savage. They thrashed at the girl and seagull violently. Scuttle, whose wings and feet were unable to hold on very well, was soon blown away into the sky within seconds. Ariel could barely hang on much longer herself. With a jerk from the ship as a wave hit it, she lost her grip on the lower shroud and plummeted back into the dark waters.

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Jim rushed about to secure the sails as ordered. His friends had slipped away to go below deck once the storm had fully hit. They needed to stay out of the rain and sea water or their wrist watches, keeping them disguised as humans, would short out. He only hoped the crew didn't notice in all of this chaos, and continued working. A large wave suddenly washed over the side and threw him into the mast roughly. Shacking the sea water from his face, he got up and went back to work once more. The spacer had to admit, this was a lot different then sailing through a meteor shower or supernova. While those seemed more threatening, this one was just as dangerous, but also more annoying. He was soaked through and through, and water kept getting into his eyes, which obscured his vision greatly. Not to mention the waves were relentless. They slammed the ship back and forth without much warning which made any job extremely difficult to do quickly.

A bright flash lit the sky around them followed by several loud cracks. The next thing he knew the top sail had split and caught fire. Even though everything was wet, the flames eagerly consumed the canvas and searched for more. This wasn't going to end well. They needed to get off the ship and make for land if they wanted to survive. At that someone shouting caught his attention and he faced the bow. The shadows of large rocks were just barely visible through the onslaught of rain. His eyes widened at the impending doom of the vessel.

'Oh great!' he thought.

Not even a minute later the ship struck the rocks head on. Sending most of the crew flying over board. Jim would've been one of them, had something not snaked around his waist and kept him there at the last second. Looking down he found Morph had tied him a lifeline. The little blob was holding onto the knot, looking like a rope himself and shacking. From the throw he had endured, he knew he would have a bruise around his waist later, but now was not the time to fret about that.

"Thanks Morph!" He called, as he headed to the the stairs to take him below. He needed to get Amelia and the others out before the ship sank.

"Jim wait!" came a familiar voice. He looked over to see Delbert with what looked like a blanket and hammock over his body, protecting him from the rain.

"Delbert? What are you doing out here?" The boy demanded.

The Doctor grabbed Jim's arm and began to drag him away. "Amelia and I had lowered the life boats before we hit the rocks. It was her idea. The crew is all aboard them now. We have to hurry!"

Jim quickly undid the rope around him and followed the man to the side where the boats were at. Delbert went first with Morph, once again in the shape of a monkey, and climbed down a rope ladder to one of the small boats. Jim took the less painstaking way and just dove off the side. The water stung when he hit it, and was pretty cold for it being near summer there. He swam upwards until he reached the open air where he gasped for breath. Turning he found the lifeboat meters away, his friend already had climbed into it. Swimming up to the vessel, several of the crew helped him on board and checked him over. Looking around he found his friends all huddled underneath sheets, their faces unseeable.

"Jim! Thank goodness! Did you see Erik?" Grim asked, standing over the spacer.

The boy looked up at the man in shock. "Erik? No, where is he?"

"He went back on the ship for Max!" Both looked up in time to see the prince with said dog in his hands, rushing to the railing.

"Erik!" They both shouted.

Just then the prince seemed to fall. Max howled as he was thrown overboard and into the water. While Grimsby helped the dog into the boat Jim made to go back for his new friend. A hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him back. "What do you think you're doing?" Amelia snapped.

"I have to-" An explosion cut him off. All stared in horror as the ship blew in half.

"No!" Jim's eyes reflected the impossible scene before him. It couldn't have ended like that. The boy scanned the waters for any trace of the prince as the two halves of the ship slowly began to sink. It was hard to tell where he might be if he was still afloat. The rain had stopped, but the fire's shadows were tricky as they danced across the wreckage.

"Come on Erik." he muttered as he continued looking. That's when he thought he saw a body, though it was far off. Something was pulling it away, something red.

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The crashing waves had made it difficult for the princess to stay surfaced as the madness unfolded. She couldn't find Flounder or Sebastian anywhere. They had been to weak to keep up with the waves which eventually had taken them away. She hoped they would be okay, but she was a little more worried about Jim. Unlike them, he couldn't just dive under and wait out the storm. If he died here and now, how would she tell Silver? She didn't want him to die anyways. Not before she got a chance to know him. Trying to see if she could spot him amongst the tinier boats she bit her bottom lip. What was she going to do if he was still on the ship?

Thats when she saw him and someone else appear at the side of the larger craft. The other man began to climb down a strange, knotted rope while Jim just dove into the water. Ariel was slightly taken back by his method, but then submerged herself to see where he went. He had gone down a few feet but began to swim back up. The girl let out a sigh of relieve and followed him back to the surface. Barking caught her attention when she was out and the girl looked back up to the ship. Erik was still on it.

He disappeared from sight as the furry creature went into the water. A few nerve-wrecking seconds past... and then the worst happened. Ariel swiftly dove into the water and headed towards the ruined ship after it had blown apart. Scraps were falling from the sky and nearly hit her as she swam through it all. Coming back up, her aquamarine eyes searched the pieces of the ship, trying to see if he had managed to stay on anything. She didn't know why she was doing this. She didn't know the guy nor really care for him, but she just couldn't let this human die. Not if she could do anything about it.

Finally, Ariel spotted him slipping off of a plank of wood. Diving under, she caught the guy under the arms and hauled him back to the top of the water before he drowned. Flounder met her there and helped her the best he could by getting under one of the guys arms and trying to pull him that way. "Ari-yel what are you doing?" Sebastian asked, swimming over to them. "He's a hue-man!"

"I'm not gonna just let him die Sebastian! Now help us or stay back!" the girl shouted, a determined look upon her face.

The crab stammered a bit, then grunted in defeat as he grabbed the prince's shirt and began making his way towards land with the other two. It was exhausting work, but thankfully the guy stayed unconscious as the three labored on. Ariel was wondering what they would do if he actually did wake up. Perhaps they could leave him to swim the rest of the way to land? She doubted that. He'd probably be too weak to make it. If worse came to worse she could just cover his eyes she guessed.

She hoped Jim was alright on those smaller boats. Looking back she couldn't really see much. It was still dark and the fires had at last gone out as the remnants of the ship had finally sunk. She had really wanted to talk to him about everything, but that would have to wait now. The princess was going to finish what she started, and besides, this guy seemed to be a good friend of Jim's. If it were her, she'd want someone to save Flounder or one of her sisters if they needed it.

The waves had calmed now, and the storm was over. The clouds were departing while the dawn sun began to rise as the small group neared the shore. Sebastian and Flounder had lost all strength to carry the guy some time ago. Ariel made the last few yards by herself, using the waves to bring her closer to the beach. At last they made it to the sand, and she dragged him out of the water enough to release him without worry. Collapsing next to him she turned to face the warming sun. She was exhausted. Never had she had to work so hard before. Not even when she had barnacle duty for upsetting her father in the past.

Sitting up, she looked over at Erik. He still wasn't awake, and that worried her. She scooted closer to see what she could do, but realized she hadn't a clue on how to help him. "Sweetie! You made it!" came a voice from above. Scuttle soon came gliding down and immediately saw her problem.

"Scuttle is he... dead?" she asked, hoping all that work wasn't for naught.

The bird checked the human's eye, "It's hard to say." he said, then went to put the guy's foot to his ear. "Oh... I can't make out a heart beat..."

'No...' Ariel thought, then she noticed his chest hitching. "No look! He's breathing! He's alive!" she called.

She had saved him. She had actually rescued a human... She had actually touched a human! Looking down at her hands she stared at them in awe. It was both exhilarating and terrifying. Never would she have guessed that one day she would've done such a thing. The mermaid glanced up at the purplish-pink and blue sky and began to sing her song about being apart of the many worlds that existed. Today, she felt closer to that dream.

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Once the boats had been beached, Jim immediately took off down the waterfront. Calling back that he needed to check something, he scaled his way over the many rocks that littered the seashore. Soon the shouts of the others grew too faint to distinguish. When he was completely out of site, Morph changed back into his original form and floated after the boy. The sun had just risen, giving them enough light to easily make their way across the stone and sand.

He knew he had seen it. A redheaded girl had been there last night, and had saved Erik. They had headed towards the beach. If he kept going west, he should be able to find them soon, or at least a trace of them. All his reasoning told him that there was no way they could've made it. There was just no way a girl could've swam all the way to land, carrying a full grown man in such weather and in the dark. They probably both drowned out there. But still, he clung onto the hope that they had survived. Perhaps the girl had, had a boat out there with her and they had got on that. How else could he explain where she came from? She couldn't have been a stow-away on their ship since it had been checked for such due to the prince's presence. And there was no way she was just casually swimming out in the middle of the ocean in the dead of night.

"I don't know what's going on, but I hope Erik's alive. Man! What is with this planet? I can't believe how much this all sucks!" he said aloud, his temper getting the better of him.

"This sucks! This sucks!" Morph copied happily, oblivious to his owners anger.

Jim gave him a look and then shook his head, "lets just hurry up and find Erik before meteors decide to rain down on us."

Coming around a bluff, Jim heard something. He stopped and strained to hear what it was. Was that... singing? It was. Someone was singing not too far off. Cautiously he advanced forward, keeping low so as not to be seen. The voice was light and airy. It definitely belonged to a girl. Could it be the girl that rescued Erik? But why would she be singing? Deciding he really didn't need to be so vigilant, he straightened up and walked to where he heard it coming from.

The singing was just beyond a hill of sand and rock. Turning the corner, his jaw dropped. Erik lay on the beach, the waves washing up on his feet. Next to him was a very alluring girl. Her coral red hair was thick and long, and her eyes were nearly the same color as the sea. She had purple shells to cover her chest and at first he thought she may be wearing a long green skirt. But when she raised the end, instead of feet there was a pair of light, transparent fins. Her whole bottom half was a tail! A fish's tail!

"A mermaid?" he gasped.

"_What would I give.. to live where you are?_

_What would I pay.. to see beyond that blue?_

_What would I do to see the... worlds up above...?_

_Where could I walk? Where could I run?_

_If I could stay all day in the sun?_

_Wonder and free, wish I could be... part of those worlds..."_

At that the mermaid gestured to the sky, her eyes gazing longingly at it. Was she... singing about wanting to see outer-space? The boy couldn't be sure, but that's what it sounded like to him. After a while he couldn't help himself. He stepped out and very slowly made his way down the sand. Something about this girl was drawing him in. Jim didn't even notice as Morph flew around his head, cooing questionably at him. He remained focused on her, as if she had cast some sort of enchantment on him. Soon he was only a long boats length away.

The mermaid turned back to Erik, but then felt his presence. Looking up, her eyes went wide at the sight of him, causing him to stop. Both stayed in place, seemingly frozen by the others strange spell. He didn't know how long they where there but the girl seemed to be the first to break from her daze.

"Jim?" she suddenly mouthed, causing him to tense. How did she know his name?

Before he could ask, Morph decided to coo at the girl while Erik stirred and began to open his eyes. The mermaid looked down at him, gave an awkward smile, then quicker then either of the boys realized, slid back into the water and dived under. Jim was about to call for her to wait when he heard barking. Max soon came plowing around the bend, with Grimsby right behind him.

"Mr. Hawkins?... Oh! Thank heaven's, you found him! Erik!" He yelled and rushed over to the prince who was sitting up and clutching his head. Jim turned towards the ocean and saw a flash of red behind a rock that was sticking out a few meters away. So there were mermaids that lived in the sea, and one had just saved his friend's life. But how did she know who he was?... Did she- could she know where Silver is?

"Jim? Jim did you see her?" a voice asked, he hadn't noticed Erik had gotten up and had been talking.

"Wha-what?" he asked, facing the guy.

"Did you see the girl that saved me? I heard her singing and I... I saw her... A little. The sun was so bright and my eyes were sore. But you saw her right?" He walked over to Jim, hope filling his eyes.

The spacer felt uneasy. If the mermaid didn't want to reveal herself to the prince, maybe he shouldn't tell him about her. After all, they were only legends to the people of this planet, perhaps that's how they wanted to stay. "No, ...no I didn't see any girl." Erik seemed to falter at that. He even nearly fell over, but Grim had caught him in time.

"Ah Erik, I think you swallowed a bit too much sea water. Off we go. A little assistance Mr. Hawkins?" He asked and slung one of the guys arms around his shoulder. Jim took the other arm and the two towed the prince away from the waters edge. Right now, he needed to worry about Erik's health. Later, he would look into this mermaid business.

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Ariel did flips in the water as she, Flounder, and Sebastian made their way to the rocky cove, where Silver resided. She felt as light as a jellyfish and as high as a seagull. The girl whooped and laughed as she wove her way through sea-weed and coral patches. She bet she had really shocked the boy with her knowledge of his name. His expression had been so cute. Her heartbeat quickened at the memory of him goggling at her. Jim had been just as entranced with her as she had with him. She couldn't wait to actually talk to him! First, she needed to inform Silver though, then they could go together to get him. Perhaps they could all fight off that Rangoon pirate too. Then, if they let her, maybe she could go with them into space! At least just to see what it was like for a little while, although... She really wanted to stay with Jim.

Something about him, just drew her in. She had never seen someone quite like him. And the mystery of what he was like only bewitched her more. 'I think I'm falling for him.' she thought and bit her bottom lip to try to hold in her giggle. She thought only her sisters were silly enough to fall in love so fast. Apparently it was genetic... or maybe just contagious. Either way she couldn't deny these new feelings for the boy or the dreams of space.

"This is fantastic! I can't wait to tell Silver!" She cried as she flipped out of the water and dove back in. Sebastian, who was hanging onto Flounder's dorsal fin to help keep up, asked "who is dis Silver? Young lady, I hope you know what you are doing!"

"I'll show you Sebastian. And you don't have to worry! He isn't a human really. He's what's called a cyborg."

Flounder nodded, "yeah! He's half metal and half something else!"

"What nonsense are you two talkin' about?" the crab snapped.

The two friends laughed as they surfaced and made their way through the maze of rocks. "You'll see." Ariel told him. "He's really amazing, he's been telling us all about space and stars and planets and-"

The mermaid gasped when they came to the sand bar. It appeared Silver had gotten back after the storm last night, but something had happened. The cyborg wasn't there, and his campsite looked torn apart. It couldn't have been due to the hurricane, or everything would have been washed away leaving no traces. The drift wood for the fire was scattered, some were in smaller, splinter like pieces. His seaweed and cloth bed were torn to shreds and looked charred. Bits were still smoking even. She didn't like this. What could've caused such damage? The redhead began to worry for her friend.

"Flounder, let's split up and search for him." she said. The fish nodded seriously. Ignoring Sebastian's questions, the two divided and swam around the small island.

Ariel checked every nook and cranny she could find. There had to be something, some sort of clue as to what happened or where Silver might be. A fear trickled into her mind, but she tried to keep it at bay. She had to keep hope that he was alright and safe. Perhaps he got away in his long boat because Rangoon was coming, or maybe another storm. To try and convince herself, she looked up at the sky, but it was clear. Not a cloud for miles, and the air wasn't heavy like before a storm. It was crisp and light. She hoped maybe it was another sneaky one then.

"Ariel!" came Flounder's voice from a little ahead. He had already made it almost around the small spit of land.

"Coming Flounder!" she called and torpedoed to where he had called from.

It didn't take her long to reach him. Moving her bangs out of her face she looked around, hoping he had found Silver. When she looked back at her friend, she found that both Flounder and Sebastian looked forlorn. It was then she noticed that the lion-fish was holding something. Reaching out her hands, he placed Silver's hat into them. It was burned a little, and there were odd small round holes in it. She looked up at her friends, tears brimming in her eyes as she clutched the hat to her chest. Now she really observed their surroundings. This was the side of the island that he usually kept his boat at. Many of the rocks were missing chunks, or had been blasted away entirely like the one when they had faced the shark. One rock near her was black. She placed her hand on it then pulled away. The strange dark substance covered her palm and fingers.

"What... happened to him?"

Flounder shook his head. "I don't know. His boat is in pieces over there in the water... but he's not here Ariel."

The mermaid had trouble thinking, but she knew one thing, she couldn't give up. He had to be somewhere around here. Raising her hand, she put her fingers to her mouth and tried to whistle. It came out weak, barely audible. She tried again and again, doing her best to hold back her tears and sobs as she did. At last she got it right. She whistled hard and waited. He had told her that if she ever needed him, to only whistle. She hoped it worked now. It needed to work now. There was no response however. She tried again several times... but only received silence in return.

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In the skeletal cove that Ursula resided in, the sea witch was busy planning with a new customer. The man was a strange one. He was red in color and his head resembled that of a hammerhead shark with four yellow eyes instead of two black ones. He wore a deep red coat that floated around him in the water and black pants that were tucked into equally black boots. The man wore nothing under the coat, leaving his red muscled chest bare except for a few scars that decorated it. His gills moved as be breathed underwater, his sharp, predator eyes never leaving the cecaelia.

"I must commend you on taking care of Silver so quickly. Try to keep him alive for now. He'll be no good to us dead." The woman stated.

The shark humanoid folded his arms, and said in a deep, raspy voice,"I've done my end of the bargain. Time to do yours, witch."

"Patience, patience... My time will come soon enough."

"If that mermaid does have the chest, what's to keep me from killing her to get it?" he snapped. Ursula smirked. As much as he wanted her to lose her cool, she had dealt with his greedy, uncivilized type before.

"Well sir, if you just go in and kill her, what's to stop her daddy from making chum out of you? Remember, he has the trident. And with that he can slaughter us both within seconds. The girl is our target, but also our shield from him." she explained, "The princess will come to me soon enough. Her father, the king, won't help her in locating Silver or being with this Jim fellow. We just need to wait for the right time to intercede."

The man scoffed and made his way out of the cavern. "Just get it done soon witch. I'm tired of being on this primitive little planet."

She waved him off with a wicked grin, "Don't worry Captain Rangoon, soon you will have your chest and Silver's head on a plate."

When he was gone from sight and Flotsam and Jetsam confirmed he had left, her smile fell into a scowl. She hated having to work with others, especially ones so stupid, but it was necessary this time. Turning back to her cauldron she looked into her orb to find the picture in it fuzzy. The princess was now moping inside the palace where her magic couldn't go. She had been there ever since the discovery of her missing friend several hours ago. Still, it was only a mater of time before she came out to seek a way of finding him. The girl was loyal to those close to her. She wouldn't leave anyone to an uncertain doom. If she had risked her fathers wrath to save a human she didn't know, she would certainly risk a whole lot more on someone she did.

For now the sea witch would wait. When the time was right, she would have the trident, the crown, AND this chest Rangoon was so eager to retrieve. She could rule all with such power! No doubt that walking fish was planning on getting his hands on the trident before her. Ursula was no fool, and she certainly didn't trust this one. He may have his silly little advanced technology, but she had her magic and years of practice at being conniving. She only had to put up with that greedy guts a little longer, then this world, and quite possibly many more would then belong to her.

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Chow!


	6. Finding Answers

**Spirit-** I promise, I did not forget about this story! I was sick with bronchitis and the onset of pneumonia for the first half of April, then was struggling to catch up with school and study for finals the other half. I have one more final, but it's no biggy, so I finally was able to get back to writing this. So please excuse my long absence. I did not plan on it, and would've wrote more when I was sick, but I was delirious half the time with high fevers. It was awful. But I'm fit and healthy now, so more chapters shall be on their way for you all! I hope you all like this one. I don't like how it jumps around so much, but I felt it couldn't go any other way. Let me know what you all think!

SPECIAL THANKS to** Aggressively Hospitable, Spottedleafpaw,** **and Beforethedawnbreaks** for the reviews! And also to all the readers that have Favorited and/or put this on their Alerts list! You guys also inspire me and it makes me happy knowing so many people love reading my fic! :)

Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes!

Disclaimer: Parts of this chapter are straight out of the movie. Those parts that seem familiar are not my own! I altered it as much as I could to fit my tale, but I felt I needed to keep some of the original scenes in it. So once again, a few lines and descriptions belong to the original "The Little Mermaid" movie made by Disney!

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**Chapter FIVE: Finding Answers**

The large room that housed the seven daughters of King Triton was abnormally quiet. The colorful girls watched as their youngest sister continued to mope about without explaining her strange mood that had started the previous day and it was now close to dinner time. In fact,they hadn't seen her this down since before the ban on music was lifted. Attina, the eldest and orange colored mermaid, had tried to confront Ariel about her behavior but the girl only replied that she didn't want to talk about it. All were at a loss at what to do next. Even Aquata and Arista's usual fighting seemed to have no effect on the girl.

Ariel just sat at the window and stared out at the kingdom without really seeing it. She needed to come up with a plan. There was no way she was going to abandon Silver like that. He had saved her life once, she needed to return the favor. The only problem is, what could she do? After finding out Silver had possibly been kidnapped, herself, Flounder, and Sebastian had scoured as much of the sea and coastline as they could in hopes of spotting Rangoon's ship. They had come across several vessels, but none had looked like they could travel through space. When it started getting dark Sebastian made them end their search and, defeated, they had gone home. She had looked a little more earlier, but stopped when the waters were getting to crowded by fishing ships. It occurred to the girl then that a boat like the one they were looking for might not be on the water. Rangoon wouldn't want it so out in the open where the humans could easily spot such an obviously alien vessel. They had to be hiding out on land somewhere. The one place she couldn't go... but Jim could!

Of course! Why didn't she think of it sooner? She could tell Jim everything that had happened. He was here looking for the cyborg anyways right? If she told him what she knew, he would have a better chance at tracking that horrible Rangoon down. She could take him to the cove for starters and perhaps he'll find something there. Some sort of clue she had missed due to her disadvantage at being sea-bound. Instantly her face lit up. She would get to meet him and help him! Her heart fluttered and she did her best to suppress a girlish giggle. However she couldn't hold in all her excitement, and she laughed as she did a back flip.

Her sisters looked up when she had laughed and now watched the girl swim over to the mirrors they were using while humming a song. What had caused such a 180 in their sisters mood? The girl looked like she was on cloud 9 as she seemed to fix her appearance in the mirror. That was odd in of itself. Ariel rarely cared about her looks since she really didn't care much about boys. However the six other mermaids were starting to think that had changed now.

They all watched as Ariel then went to leave the room but ran into their father. She greeted him good morning, placed a sea flower in his hair, and then twirled away, still humming to herself. The girls had followed her out and watched their little sister head off. "Boy she's got it bad." Attina commented.

"What? What has she got?" King Triton asked.

Adrina responded, "Isn't it obvious daddy? Ariel's in love."

The king repeated that last part to himself. He then wished his daughters a good day and went off. The girls looked at each other and headed back into their room. They instantly began to gossip about their oddball sister.

"Did you see that? She was completely all dreamy like." Arista said.

"Yes Arista, we have eyes." Adrina remarked dryly, earning a disapproving look from Attina.

"Ugh! I can't believe this! How can she have a boyfriend before me!" All rolled their eyes at Adella and her boy crazed mind. She rounded on Alana and Arista, the other two young sisters who were manless. "Oh come on, you two HAVE to admit you're a little jealous!"

Alana just shrugged, "A little."

"I have no time for a guy. I want to focus on my music." Arista pointed out. Unlike her sisters, who loved to sing, she preferred playing instruments. When she wasn't doing concerts with them she was playing in the band at the re-established Cat Fish Club. The girl was still working on getting her father's permission to tour with them.

"Either way, maybe we should check this guy out. I don't like that Ariel had that weird mood-swing." Aquata stated. The others agreed. This would be Ariel's first boyfriend, and the rest of them have had at least some experience with mermen. The group huddled together to form a plan.

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Sebastian found Ariel waiting for Flounder on a rock. As she sat there she started pulling petals off of a flower, playing the "he likes me, he likes me not" game. The crab was in an utter state of distress. He was worried the King would soon find out what Ariel had done, or worse, what she was going to do. The redhead on the other hand, was completely oblivious to the consequences of her actions. All she could think about was Jim and finding Silver. Sebastian admitted her cause was a noble one, and if what she says is true then she isn't making friends with humans exactly. Still, could he be so sure? Ariel wasn't one to really lie, but she has been known to not tell the whole truth.

"Tonight would be the best time to see him!" She suddenly cried after her little game ended with the last petal standing for that Jim liked her. "The humans won't be around the beach."

"Ari-yel please! Will you get your head out of de clouds and back in de water where it belongs!" Sebastian tried to reason as she grabbed onto the girls fin when she began swimming around.

"Scuttle can find him and bring him! Maybe he's staying with that prince in the castle? We can try there first! Maybe theirs a way in? I know the water goes beyond that wall. I'll bring the box to him too. I've been keeping it in my room since Rangoon took Silver, just in case, but it'd be safer in Jim's hands. Flounder can probably find a way inside and then-"

"Down here is your home!" The crustacean finally yelled and swam to the front of her. "Ari-yel, listen to me. De human world, and from the sounds of it, dis Jim's space, are a mess. Life under de sea is better than anyting they got up der!..."

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Prince Erik's room was very large. It had the finest furniture and decorations Jim had ever seen. Like the dinning room, it had one wall made up entirely of windows that overlooked the coast. The sun was beginning to set, casting pinks, oranges, and purples into the sky. The doctors had finally finished looking over the prince and had now allowed visitors. Jim and Morph were the last to go in. Erik was sitting up in his bed that looked like 6 people could sleep in it comfortably. The man seemed exhausted, but otherwise fine. According to the doctors he had a few minor burns and cuts that would heal over time, but nothing serious. They guessed he may have just been delirious after swimming all the way to shore. No one seemed to believe a girl had saved him.

Pulling up the stool that was by the bed, Jim sat down. Morph floated over to the prince and cuddled into the crook of his neck. Erik chuckled some and petted the little pink blob. "I'm alright Morph."

"Just tired?" Jim suggested.

Erik let out a frustrated sigh, "tired of everyone asking if I'm alright, if I need anything, does it hurt anywhere?... I know they mean well, but I'm pretty sure I'm capable of getting whatever I need. The doctors did say I'm physically fine."

"Well you are a prince." Jim pointed out. Erik made a face at that and the spacer smirked. "But I'm glad you're alright. You nearly scared us all to death. I thought Grim was going to have a heart attack."

The prince snorted, "I'm surprised he didn't... Jim... you really didn't see the girl that rescued me?"

The boy gulped. He still thought it best not to tell Erik that he was saved by a mermaid, at least not until he figured out how she knew him. "Well... uh... I did... I did hear singing."

"You did? I knew it! I knew I wasn't dreaming! Didn't she have a beautiful voice? I'm going to find her once Grim allows me to get out of bed." He continued on, not noticing that Jim wasn't really listening. The spacer was planning his own way of finding the girl. He had a lot to ask her after all.

Wanting to change to topic he then asked, "hey! When you're all better I can take you for a ride on my solar surfer. I built it myself, and I've been dying to go-"

"That's perfect! We can search the coast line with that to look for the girl!" Jim threw his face into his hands with a sigh. It was obvious the prince had tunnel vision at the moment. Really? If the girl hadn't somehow magically known Jim, he wouldn't be the slightest bit interested in her.(That's what he kept telling himself anyways.) Had she saved him instead, then yeah, he'd like to find her to thank her. But going out of his way to do so, and believing this girl to be his one true love or something like that was pushing it. Maybe fairy tales were common on this planet?

After awhile Grimsby came in and told them that Erik should really get some sleep now. It had gotten pretty late again. Jim left and headed to his room at a run. Upon opening the door, he found B.E.N jumping on the beds again. Morph chuckled and flew over to the android. Jim quickly shut the door, drawing attention to himself. The robot halted, stared wide-eyed for a moment, then sat down quickly and looked the perfect picture of innocence. The spacer snorted, but didn't feel like scolding his friend at the moment. Without saying anything he went over to his trunk and rummaged around for a bit.

"Oh, hey Jimmy! How was the princey?" the android asked.

Jim groaned, "he won't stop talking about the girl who saved him. I'm starting to think he may have actually hit his head like the others say."

"That bad?"

"Well kinda," he shrugged. "I just don't see what's so great about being in love... it didn't do my mom any good."

B.E.N silently watched him after that. Curious as to what his buddy was up too. Soon Jim pulled out a bag and stuffed a flashlight, an oxygen mouth piece for breathing under water, two strange ear pieces, rope, a towel, a spare shirt and pants into it. After packing away all of that, he went to the closet and pulled out his solar surfer. He then motioned for the robot and blob to follow him, but keep silent. The two looked at each other, but obeyed and snuck out with him. The halls were dark now, everyone was preparing or had already gone to bed. The three tip-toed down the corridors as quietly as they could. B.E.N nearly tripped over several pots or tables multiple times, but Jim had been smart enough to keep an eye on him and prevented the worst. It didn't take long before they were able to slip outside into the cool night.

Making their way down a few stone steps they soon reached the beach. They waves were calm and the nearly full moon gave them enough light to see by. "Jimmy, now can you tell me what the heck we're doing out here? Not that I'm complaining... but ... well yeah, I am." B.E.N asked as the trio walked along the coast.

Jim just snorted and replied, "I'm going to find that mermaid that rescued Erik."

"Mermaid?" the android cried, and quickly covered his mouth when Jim glared back at him.

Morph chuckled and turned into the girl he and Jim had seen. "Mermaid! Mermaid!"

"Why are we looking for her? ...Don't tell me you're doing this to help Princey find his one true love?" he asked dramatically. "I thought you didn't care for that mushy gooshy stuff?"

Jim shook his head, "I don't, but she knew who I was though. Somehow she knew my name. Maybe she's seen Silver. He's the only one on this planet that could possibly know who I am."

"Well that's nice, but how are you going to find her? The ocean is HUGMUNGOUS!" he loudly pointed out as he flailed his arms to advertise the large amount of dark water around them. They had finally stopped walking. Looking around, the robot realized that they were at the place Erik had been found the other day.

"I'll start by looking at the spot where the ship sank and the surrounding areas." Jim explained, as he readied the solar surfer. "You're going to take me out there on this then wait back here at the shore. My oxygenator will last me at least until dawn. It's 12am now, and it supplies me with air for six hours."

"What about water pressure? Or sharks? Or worse... sea turtles? They're grumpy yah know?"

"These ear pieces help to relieve water pressure." he said as he shoved them into his ears. "And as for any underwater wild life, I do have a switch-knife on me and I'll keep some flares in a plastic bag so if I run into any real trouble I'll signal for you to come get me. The flashlight I have is water-proof so that'll be fine, I just hope the batteries last."

B.E.N looked uncertain as the solar surfer was turned on and the three hopped aboard, "you sure about this Jimmy? We don't know what exactly lives down there. Why can't we wait for the others in the morning?"

"Because I have to do this alone. Silver's counting on me, and I'm not going to let him down. If I don't find her or any clues by morning then we'll tell the others ok?"

The robot nodded as they took off in the direction of the sunken ship. Jim smiled as the cool air and ocean spray washed against his face. It had been too long since he last road his solar surfer. Though he wouldn't get to do much with it tonight, it was good to be out and flying again. Instantly he felt better and knew he was going to find what he needed. There was no stopping him now.

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Ariel followed Flounder away as Sebastian got distracted by his own singing. The fish had finally arrived and told her that he had gotten something for her. The mermaid was curious as to what it could be and was a little surprised when they came to their secret grotto. She asked him what this was all about as they entered, but he merely commented that it was a surprise. At that they rounded the corner and Ariel saw a rectangular shaped rock in the middle of the room. Swimming over she found it had some sort of writing craved onto it. She could read many human languages, and this one seemed to be English, but the sentences made absolutely no sense. At the bottom was a carved capital 'S'.

"I found this near Silver's island. I think he wrote a message in it before he was captured." Flounder explained proudly.

Ariel's face lit up as she looked at her friend. "Really? Oh this is great! It must be some sort of code as to where he is or what happened! Oh, I wish I could read it."

"You can't... but maybe Jim can?" the fish suggested slyly.

Ariel beamed at him, she then grabbed him in a fierce hug and spun around. "Flounder you're the best! I can't wait. Now we have a lead and all we need is to find-"

She stopped immediately and gasped. A figure was standing in the shadows at the entrance. She instantly recognized her father. He then emerged into the light, a scowl set on his face. Flounder hid in a helmet as Ariel tried to hide the stone behind her. King Triton huffed about how he had set rules for his kingdom and how he expected for them to be obeyed by everyone. Ariel tried to reason, but he cut her off quick.

"Is it true? You've been conversing with one human, saved another, and are now trying to find a third?" he growled.

"Daddy, Jim and Silver have been looking for each other and the other would've died!"

"That's their problem, and as far as I'm concerned that'd been one less human to worry about!"

Ariel glared at her father, "you don't even know them." Triton snapped at her, saying he didn't have to know them. All land dwellers, whether from this planet or the next were the same. The mermaid couldn't take much more. Without thinking she blurted, "daddy I want to be with them!" quickly she covered her mouth.

"No... Have you lost your senses completely? They are human's, you're a mermaid!" When she commented that she didn't care Triton became angry. No, not angry, he was livid. "So help me Ariel! I am going to get through to you! And if this is the only way! So Be It!"

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Ursula was positively loving how everything was working out. Triton had just destroyed all of Ariel's prized possessions, even the rock with Silver's last message and the holographic locket. She hadn't seen the chest, but perhaps the mermaid had hid it elsewhere. Her poopsies were now waiting patiently for the king to exit and make their deal with the little mermaid. Now that the girl was in a state of grief, it would be easier for the sea witch to manipulate her. It was finally time for her to appear on the chess board she and Rangoon had set up. It wouldn't be too long now before she had total control.

Seeing that her eels were now conversing with the mermaid, Ursula began to prepare. She knew just what to do once Ariel arrived to her dwelling. Her babies would take care of her friends if they did choose to follow. The mermaid would fall right into her trap once she hears of what the cecaelia has to offer her. Oh this was just too rich! Who would've guessed that these spacers would've been the final puzzle piece she needed to finally overthrow her brother? It was all so delicious.

Checking, she found that the group was nearly to her cove. She quickly hid away in the shadows, her entrance was key to playing the "good" witch. Soon she heard her eels sliver in, followed by the hesitant mermaid. Her "garden" started getting antsy at the girls presence. They wanted to warn Ariel away, but their lack of voices and their horrific appearances only frightened the girl away from them. Ursula smiled at their feeble attempts.

"Come in. Come in, my child!" she chided as the mermaid rounded the corner and Ursula revealed herself. "We mustn't lurk in doorways... it's rude."

She continued to tease as she went and sat down at her vanity. "Now, you're here because you want to help find this uh, cyborg friend of yours and be with that young spacer. Not that I blame you, that kid is quite handsome isn't he?" she chuckled, "well, Angel-fish. The only way to get what you want, is to become a human yourself. It's obvious all your answers revolve around land."

Ariel gasped, "can you do that?"

'Hook, line, and sinker.' Ursula thought as she smirked at the girl. She began to sing to her about how she had changed her ways and now helped people instead of harmed them as she had done in her past. Using her cauldron she brought forth images of sad looking merpeople who she changed into beautiful figures. She helped them find love and happiness in life. Her face soon fell though when she explained that she did have to turn them into the sea-weed creatures when they couldn't pay for her help. However, all around, she had helped plenty others gain their happiness.

"Now then, here's the deal: I will give you a potion that will turn you into a human for 5 days. Got that? FIVE days." she explained as she lead Ariel over to her basin. "Now listen, because this is the important part. Before the sunsets on the fifth day you must find the cyborg. And it can only be you. No one else, understand?"

She used her magic to show the girl the highlights of what she was saying through images that popped up out of her cauldron, "also, in order to stay human you must receive a kiss,... and not just any kiss. A kiss of true love! It can come from anyone. That young spacer fellow, or even that hunk of a prince, but they must truly love you. IF you find the cyborg, and IF you get that kiss before the sun sets on the fifth day, you'll remain human permanently!" with that, there was a glowing silhouette of Ariel running with legs. The girl stared at it in wonder and Ursula smirked. "But, if you can't, you'll turn back into a mermaid and... you belong to me!"

"No, Ari-yel!" came a cry. Sebastian and Flounder had followed their friend to Ursula's lair just as she suspected they would. Instantly her poopsies wrapped around the two to keep them from interrupting further as they had been instructed to do. Using one of her tentacles, the cecaelia made the mermaid look at her again.

"Have we got a deal?" she asked coyly

Ariel seemed torn. She mentioned that if she indeed became human she would never be able to be with her family again. Ursula told her that was basically life. You either had one or the other. She then brought up that they needed to discuss payment now. When Ariel tried to say she didn't have anything, the sea-witch silenced her and mentioned that she wasn't asking for much... just the girl's voice. That caused another debate between the two and Ursula quickly took the upper hand. She cried to the girl that talking was Highly over-rated up on land. Men preferred silence over chatter, and what was the point if Ariel could use her looks and body to get what she needed? With that she began tossing tons of bottles with questionable substances into her cauldron from her pantry. Ariel was too fearful to say anything as the witch worked her magic and continued to sing.

"Come on you Poor Unfortunate Soul! Go Ahead! Make Your Choice!" She conjured up images of Silver and Jim, the later looking at Ariel with a smile. She wasn't listening to what Ursula was saying until her face popped through Jim's as they both said, "Just You're Voice!"

After a few more things were added and small explosions and smoke began to billow out of the basin, the woman grabbed the mermaid around the shoulders. A contract and pen suddenly appeared before them. Ursula sang that if Ariel wanted this, she had to pay for it, and encouraged the girl to sign the golden scroll right. There was a moments pause as the mermaid tried to think it over and the witch whispered to her lackeys that she was winning, but she decided to nudge Ariel once more.

"The boss is on a roll!" Ursula bellowed as she spun upwards in the water. She gestured towards the girl who took hold of the pen and prepared to make the final deal. "This Poor!... Un-.!..-Fortunate SOOOOUUUUULLL!"

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Jim's body was starting to go numb. The ocean water wasn't too cold, but after so much swimming and having stripped down to his trunks before hand, his muscles were beginning to cramp and tire. No to mention the bruise around his waist that he had received from his lifeline was already a nice shade of purple and very sore. He had already searched the area of the sunken ship and found no trace of any merpeople. It had been several hours now. Dawn would probably be approaching soon enough. The mouth piece, that looked like a kazoo only the middle had a bit sticking out that he had to bite onto to keep in his mouth, was starting to hurt his jaw. His nerves were also getting tired. Every movement was a shark or some scary, big fish coming to eat him. Several times he did have to hide as an octopus or swordfish passed by. Most of the time the sea creatures were asleep on their... well, fins. However, not knowing what this ocean harbored it was better to be safe then not get a chance to be sorry.

Deciding to take another break he sunk down to the sand and sat. Massaging his muscles did nothing for him at this point. They were too stiff and the pressure wasn't helping. His de-pressurizing ear pieces were losing power. Probably only had an hour left on them. The oxygenator would still work but he'd only be able to skim the top of the water if his ear pieces did die. That would do no good if he couldn't see that far down.

'This sucks! Where the heck are these people?' he thought, looking around furiously. 'you'd think I'd have found one of them by now?'

He refused to believe that maybe the girl hadn't been a mermaid. That maybe the "fin" was some weird bathing-suit style. After all, if she had nothing to hide, why would she have swam away? 'Argh, come on! Just give me something here!'

Looking around again, he caught sight of a faint lavender glow in the distance. What the heck could be glowing at the bottom of the ocean? Deciding it was his best bet, he kicked off the sand and began to head towards it. This was the last place he was going to look. After that he'd head back up to the surface and signal for B.E.N and Morph to come get him. He probably wouldn't have the strength to make it to shore, though it wasn't too far off from his position.

Coming up over some coral he found the strangest sight. His eyes went wide as he looked at what appeared to be a large skeleton of some sort of monster, surrounded by what he guessed were either geysers or miasmas. It's mouth was open wide and seemed to be an entrance. The light was coming from inside of the thing. Now, Jim may be brave and adventurous, but going into the mouth of some large, dead creature (and who knows, maybe it wasn't dead and just looked like it was) seemed like a very stupid idea even to him. He'd rather fight off pirates or sail through a meteor shower then go in what could very well be the Black Hole of the ocean.

About to give up and just head for the surface Jim stopped when he heard something. Straining a bit he could make out someone singing. There weren't words to the song, it was just vocalization, but it calmed him down. 'What the?' he thought, before heading slowly towards the skeleton. His fears were abandoned at the familiarity of that voice. It had to be the mermaid he had seen! Picking up speed he headed for the mouth and peeked inside. The light had now turned green and ominous.

"Keep singing!" Cried a different voice at the back of the cavern.

The singing got louder. As quietly as he could, Jim entered and followed the sound. He reached a bend and peered around it, taking out his knife as he did so. The scene before him was both enchanting and terrifying. It was the mermaid from yesterday. She was surrounded by the green light which morphed into long, creepy hands. The hands seemed to be controlled by a large, purple woman with black tentacles instead of a fin for her bottom half. As the girl continued to sing, a small, ball of light formed in her throat. The hands went towards her, one wrapping around her waist while the other paused in front of her face. Then, to Jim's horror, it dove into the mermaids mouth and pulled out the ball of light. The girl's hands flew up to her throat. Her voice was still ringing throughout the cove but it was now coming from the ball of light which was floating over to the octopus-woman. The smile on her face looked sinister as she trapped the light into a shell.

The strange cauldron thing between them then began to puff out tons of smoke and roll like thunder. A yellow light sprang out and wrapped the mermaid into a yellowish bubble. The older woman began to laugh evilly as the golden aura whirred around the two. Jim backed away a bit and noticed that there was a small yellow and blue fish with a red crab watching in horror as well as the light spun around the mermaids fin. After a second the fin split in half and formed a pair of legs and feet. The bubble vanished and the girl began to struggle. It clicked in Jim's mind that she was no longer a mermaid, but a human, a drowning human! Dropping his knife, he, the fish, and the crab shot forward and took hold of her. Wrapping an arm around her chest he kicked as hard as he could. The laughter of the scary woman continued to echo around them as they hastily left the cove through an opening in the ceiling.

'Damn it!' Jim thought as he realized that the surface was too far away from where they were. The girl would die soon if she continued trying to breathe under water. Taking a deep breath he then took out his oxygenator and shoved it into the red-head's mouth. She grabbed at it but soon realized it was helping to draw air in. Jim cursed over and over in his head as they made their way to the top of the ocean. It was just his luck that he found the mermaid that had saved Erik, she gets witched into being a human and now they were struggling to get out of the ocean so they could survive.

It seemed like an eternity but they finally broke through the water's edge. Jim drew in as much air as he could and coughed as it stung his lungs. With much effort, shifting the girl in his hold, and grunting he managed to get out his flare gun and fire it into the air. Tossing it into the water he turned to the now human girl in his arm.

"You ok?" he asked. She stared at him wide-eyed and nodded vigorously. He noticed she still had the mouth piece in and took it back. He smiled to reassure her, "you don't need that anymore. Now, I can't hold you forever. Kick your feet to stay above the water."

He looked down to see if she was following his orders and immediately turned a bright red. He hadn't noticed in the chaos before hand, but the girl was naked from the waist down. His head snapped back up and he tried to pretend he didn't see anything. The girl didn't seem to care that he had seen her, but she was starting to kick her new feet to help. Hearing a low humming they looked behind them to find Jim's solar surfer making it's way over. The girl panicked and began to flail about again.

"Hey, would you calm down! That's my friend, he's just coming to get us!" he snapped as she splashed water in his face repeatedly in her attempts to get away. She stopped after one more splash and stared at the thing, still a little frightened by it's strange appearance. Jim blew his bangs from his face and grabbed hold of her once more.

"JIMMY! Buddy, you're alive!" B.E.N cried as he circled around them.

"Alive! Alive!" Morph chanted and floated down towards them. Jim half expected the girl to freak again at the blob's appearance but instead she looked at it curiously. Morph cooed and smiled at her which earned him a smile back.

"Morph, hand me that towel in the bag." Jim ordered.

The blob chuckled and went to fetch it. "But Jimmy, it'll get wet... And I thought you were looking for a mermaid?" B.E.N pointed out.

"I really don't care right now, and well... she was a mermaid." he grunted, feeling his face heat up again. Once the little shape-shifter retrieved the towel, Jim quickly wrapped it around the girls bottom half as best he could. "There. B.E.N, the surfer won't be able to support all of us so you're going to drag us to shore. Go slow. Morph tie that rope around the base and give the other end to me."

When all was said and done B.E.N pulled the two behind him with the rope as they made their way back to land. The sun had already risen as they flew through the water. The fish and crab from before followed closely behind and seemed to be talking to the girl though the spacer didn't understand what was being said. He then gave up and sighed as he continued to hold onto the rope tied around himself and the mermaid-turned-human girl. All the nights events would be explained shortly anyways... If only he knew...

**88888**

Chow!


	7. Not What They Expected

**Spirit-** Little late on the update, but at least it's out this week! Not a whole lot happens this chapter. There are some key parts, and the rest is sort of just... filler. But hey, it's a start in our favorite couples relationship. Let me know what you all think. If it truly just sucks, I'll try to re-write it, but honestly I don't think I can change much without altering the whole plot I have planned. Next chapter, we'll get some action going!

SPECIAL THANKS to** Aggressively Hospitable, J, Amanda, theBlackOrange, AJtheWeird,** **and Beforethedawnbreaks** for the reviews!

Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes!

Side Note: The order of Ariel's sisters ages is pretty much the same as the first movie, but I dumped up Attina. I always thought she was the oldest, and was surprised she wasn't, so I just made it her. It fits better anyways(at least for my story), but everyone else remains the same as the original film.

**Chapter SIX: Not What They Expected**

"Are you Serious!" Jim asked, a little frustrated.

Ariel just shook her head, and motioned again that she couldn't speak. '_If I could, I would've by now_.' she thought.

The boy seemed frozen at this for a moment. After taking a long breather from there little adventure, the spacer had tried asking her a few questions to which she either nodded, or shook her head at. When he finally asked why she wasn't speaking, she motioned that she couldn't. He now remembered that little ball of light the freaky octopus woman had taken from the girls throat. That must've been her voice. But why had she taken it, and why was the mermaid now human? There were so many questions and now he had no hope of finding an answer. The boy was half tempted to bang his head on the nearest rock.

"I can't believe this... I was so close!" He grunted.

The girl watched him as he grabbed his hair in aggravation. She felt kind of bad. She hadn't intended for this to happen. Jim walked over to the strange metal boy and they began talking while the floating pink thing swirled around them. Ever once in awhile it would look over at her and wave. She liked it, whatever it was.

Ariel then decided to try standing on her new legs. She was wearing an extra set of Jim's clothes. The strange metal boy had helped her into them when the spacer refused. She vaguely wondered why, but was then too fascinated by the garments too care. Looking over, she found Jim still looked frustrated. Biting her bottom lip she tried to think of something to cheer him up. Turning to the water she found Sebastian and Flounder were still waiting there. On their way to the beach they had asked what all should they tell Jim, if anything, and had wondered if he had heard much of what went on at Ursula's lair. Obviously he hadn't been eavesdropping long, or he would've known why the girl couldn't speak.

Seeing the crab motion for her to get closer to him, she knelt down and hugged her legs to her chest. Trying to keep her balance on her feet was awkward but she managed. "Ari-yel, are you sure about dis? I could go talk to de King and he will have it set straight away."

Ariel shook her head. If her father came, she would probably be confined to the palace for the rest of her life. She wouldn't be able to save Silver then, or be with Jim. Thinking about that now she felt so stupid. How on Earth was she going to get a guy to fall in love with her in five days? Ursula had tricked her into signing that contract. If she hadn't dazzled the princess with her magic and had allowed enough time for her to consider all the real consequences, Ariel might not have gone through with it. She felt like the most gullible guppy in the whole sea. However, it was done. She now needed to focus on finding her new friend, and if Jim did start to fall for her then that would be great! She'd take everything as it came to her for now.

"Ariel, should we talk to Jim for you? Maybe explain parts of the contract? Like how you know Silver and need to find him?" Flounder suggested. The girl thought about this, then smiled and nodded.

"I tink it's best we leave out most of de details. Knowing dat sea witch she won't want you tellin too much." the crab put in.

With another nod, Ariel stood up and clumsily rushed over to Jim. She half fell on him when she reached him. He looked down at her in mild shock, and waited to see what she wanted. The redhead felt her cheeks heat up, but quickly recovered and pulled on his arm. "What?" he asked, but allowed her to lead him to the waters edge.

"Boy! Now you listen to me!" Jim looked down at Sebastian. He was a bit surprised when he saw it was the crab that had spoken. He didn't think the animals of this planet were capable of speech.

Raising a brow he then asked, "you... can talk?"

"Dat's right Mon! Now, seeing as how you know Ari-yel isn't exactly a human, I think it best we explain a few tings." he said, motioning to Flounder as well.

The fish smiled up at him as B.E.N and Morph also moved in to hear what they had to say. "Ariel and I found Silver a few days ago. He became our friend and saved us from a shark."

"But apparently dis Silver was caught in some trouble. So Ari-yel made a deal with da sea witch. She would give up her voice in exchange for human legs so she can find dis friend of hers." Sebastian explained.

"Woah! Sounds like some heavy stuff." B.E.N said, his eyes popping out a bit.

Jim wasn't paying attention to the robot. Instead he looked over at Ariel who squirmed a bit under his awed gaze. "You mean... Silver's alive?"

"As far as we know, yes. There was no evidence dat he is over wise." the crab said as he folded his claws.

Jim's friends looked over at him in concern. He was being unusually quiet. In truth, he was just trying to process all that had just been said. Everything felt jumbled. Too much had happened in such a short amount of time. One thing kept ringing in his head though. John Silver was alive! He had managed to survive here all this time and even make new friends! Their efforts hadn't been in vain after all. He couldn't be too far from where they were. If he was hanging around with mermaids and fish he had to be near the sea.

The next thing said drew him out of his thoughts, "Wait, what?" he asked, wondering if he heard right.

"We think he might have been kidnapped though." repeated the little yellow and blue fish. "by a pirate named... what was his name again Ariel? Harpoon?"

The girl shook her head then, with her finger, spelled it out in the wet sand. Jim watched as she finished then read the name. All color drained from his face. He needed to inform the others immediately of this. B.E.N read the name over his shoulder and gave out a horrible girlish scream. He quickly shut his mouth when Jim gave him a look. Ariel and the sea creatures looked concerned at their reactions. The spacer rapidly gathered his things while he explained.

"This is bad. If it was Rangoon, we have to tell the captain immediately." he informed. "If he really is here, we're in for a lot more trouble than I thought."

"Wait mon! Ari-yel needs to go with you. Remember, she did this all to find your Silver." Sebastian cried.

Jim looked over at the girl. He didn't think that was such a good idea. No doubt about it, there was going to be a fight. She would just get in the way and possibly get one of them killed if not herself.

Sensing his hesitation, Ariel stuck out her chin and awkwardly made her way up the sand, heading towards the castle. Sebastian told Flounder to meet them their before scurrying to catch up with the girl. She picked him up and put him in one of the pockets in her pants. Morph cooed and flew over to her, seeming to encourage the girl as she tried to keep her balance.

Jim called out to them, a little annoyed by the girls attitude, "You shouldn't get involved! You might get killed if Rangoon really is here."

Ariel looked over her shoulder at him and lifted a brow. '_Why's he being so stubborn? Doesn't he think I know that? I'm pretty much as good as dead if I don't do this anyways.'_ she thought. Then motioned for him to come along.

The spacer rolled his eyes, but slung his bag on his shoulder and easily caught up to her. B.E.N followed, while trying to hold the solar surfer. He turned on his disguise watch and Morph changed back into a monkey as they found the stairs that would lead them up the bluff to the castle. Ariel's eyes had become very wide as she stared at their surroundings. Having been confined to the sea all her life, she was fascinated by the simplest of things. B.E.N found it amusing to explain everything to her, while Jim was getting even more annoyed that they had slowed down. Didn't they understand the gravity of the situation!... Apparently not as they stopped yet again. This time for the robot to explain to her what an "ant" was.

It was just barely noon when they finally made it to the large building and went in. B.E.N went to quickly put the surfer back in their room before any of the servants noticed it. Jim told Ariel to stick with him as he made to go to the dinning hall. The girl followed as best she could. She kept slipping on the marble floor and bumping into things as she stared in wonder at all the objects in the hall. In the end, Jim had to support her like a wounded soldier all the way down the corridor.

Upon entering the grand room they were ambushed by three very angry adults. Delbert, Amelia, and Grimsby looked quite peeved at the boy and bombarded him with very parental like questions. "Where were you?", "why were you out so late?", "what on earth have you been doing?" Those kinds of things. Jim was at a loss for words, and was a bit surprised they hadn't noticed the red head he was holding up.

Erik did, and stood up from his seat at the end of the table, "Jim... who is that?" he asked. This drew the attention of the other three, and they now stared in shock at the girl as if she magically appeared out of thin air.

Ariel just smiled kindly at them as she wondered why they were giving her such odd looks. She looked over each of them in turn to commit their faces and such to memory. "This is Ariel. I ugh... found her on the beach." Jim answered.

"Why are you wearing Jim's clothes?" Amelia asked, arching a brow as she analyzed the ensemble.

Quickly racking his brain for an answer, and trying not to go red at the memory, Jim managed to come up with something, "she was ship-wrecked. Her other clothes were completely torn up."

"Where are you from child?" Grimsby asked gently. Ariel shook her head. "What's the mater? Cat got your tongue?"

"She can't speak Grim." the boy explained.

"Oh..." That came from Erik, who now looked crestfallen. Jim guessed he had thought that this was the girl that had saved him. He was correct in that, but when Jim was about to say so Ariel nudged him and gave him the slightest of a head shake. Puzzled, and a bit annoyed, he decided to keep his mouth shut and ask her later why she didn't want to be found out.

"Well my dear, you certainly have been through much. How about Carlotta takes you to freshen up and find a suitable outfit for you to wear?" Grimsby suggested.

The girl nodded and he called out for the head maid. Ariel looked a little nervous now and turned to Jim as if asking if it were okay. The boy gulped at those big, sad, aqua blue eyes, but then motioned for her to go with the woman. Still a bit unsure looking, the girl slowly made her way over to the door that was being held open by the maid. When it shut, Jim felt like he could relax again.

"Mr. Hawkins. I would like a word with you privately." came Amelia's stern voice. He groaned, but nodded and followed the captain and Delbert out as they made their apologies to Erik and his advisor. He knew he had a lot of explaining to do, and none of it was going to be easy.

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Flounder was hurrying as fast as he could over to the giant wall that surrounded the castle. There were holes at the bottom of it that allowed the ocean water to go through and collect nicely on the other side. If he could squeeze through the bars at these holes, then he could be there for when ever Ariel needed him. The little fish thought about how all of this was going so far. It had surprised them when Jim had appeared at Ursula's and helped Ariel out. What was he doing there? How did he even find that place? Flounder wondered if they should've asked him those questions. It after all, wasn't very common for humans to just go swimming around in very deep under water at such late hours of the night.

The little fish saw the wall up ahead and was about to speed up, when something suddenly grabbed him from behind. "Gotcha!" came a voice. The fish turned in terror, thinking it had been one of the palace guards or worse, King Triton himself. What he found however, seemed to terrorize him more. It was one of Ariel's sisters, Aquata. The rest were coming up behind her.

"Flounder you have a lot of explaining to do. Where is Ariel? Why didn't you two and Sebastian come home last night? Father has been out looking for her everywhere!" Attina cried. She looked like a nervous wreck.

Andrina nodded, "and so have we for that matter."

"This is cutting major-ly into my beauty sleep." Alana whined, but was silenced by the two oldest glaring at her.

Aquata and Attina looked back at the fish and waited for him to answer. Flounder shrunk back. How was he going to get out of this one? He was a horrible liar and the girls scared him. They could be really nasty if they wanted to be. "Ok well...Ariel's been transformed into a human by Ursula so she could go find Silver who was kidnapped by a very bad pirate, and be with Jim, Silver's son, but then Jim found us and helped her to land. Now they're at the castle and I'm trying to get in so I can help, because if Ariel fails in finding Silver and getting Jim to fall in love with her in five days, then she belongs to Ursula for the rest of her LIFE!... Oh and Sebastian is with her too."

Flounder looked at the girls. The whole story had come out rather fast and he wondered if any of them even understood it. The six just continued to stare with blank faces. The fish vaguely wondered if something in their heads had broke. Then Arista let out a nervous laugh, "Ha ha ha, that was good one! You nearly had us going there Flounder... So where is Ariel?... Really?"

Rolling his eyes, the fish turned around and pointed to the castles wall. "She's in there with Jim and Sebastian."

"What?" they all cried.

"This is bad!"

"What was she thinking?"

"We have to tell father!"

Flounder turned back to them, "what? No! You can't!"

"Flounder humans are dangerous!" Attina snapped. "For all we know, she could already be..."

She stopped, not wanting to say it. He shook his head. "They're not dangerous. Jim saved Ariel from drowning when she was changed. And Silver saved us both from a shark a couple of days ago. They can be good just like we can be."

"Flounder... human's killed our mother. I will not stand by and let them do the same to Ariel." she said and made to head back to the palace. The others turned to follow her. Flounder looked back at the castle, then back over to the sisters. He had to stop them. He knew not all humans were bad. Why would they have helped them so many times if they were. Yes, it was human's that killed Queen Athena, but just like merpeople, not all humans were good too. Marina and definitely Ursula were proof of that.

Feeling more determined, he speed over and swam in front of the girls, blocking their path. "Ariel wants to do this for Silver! It was her choice and she knew the risks! If it had been her, you would do anything to save her right? This is the only way."

"Oh yeah, and what about that Jim guy?" Adella asked, crossing her arms.

"Uh... well..."

"I knew it! She's just doing this to get a boyfriend!" The other five glared at their sister, which quickly made her back off.

Attina looked back her her youngest sister's best friend. He met her gaze and waited. She was not one to be rushed when thinking. The others all looked to their elder sister as well. She could see they wanted to help Ariel, but would follow her lead in matters like this. Letting out a sigh, she turned back to the fish. "Tell Ariel to meet us in that place behind the castle wall at sunset today."

"How will you get in there? It's a tight squeeze." he asked.

Arista smirked, "you leave that to us."

"Just do it, or I'll change my mind." threatened the eldest. Flounder gulped, but nodded. "Good, we'll keep quiet with daddy for now. This needs a bit more planning than my baby sister thinks."

With that she swam over the fish and back towards Atlantica. The others bid good-bye to him then followed suit. Flounder let out a breath he felt like he had been holding for the whole time. Shaking his head he made his way over to the wall. He had to let Ariel or Sebastian know as soon as possible or they all were in deep trouble.

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"Mr. Hawkins what were you thinking?" Amelia scolded as she paced furiously around the study room they had been loaned for the moment. Jim had been forced into the chair, Delbert was standing behind him. The doctor, too, looked unhappy. Having now had kids of his own, he had developed a protective streak. Amelia was still the more stern of the two, but he could hold his ground when he wanted to now.

"I'm with Amelia on this one Jim. I know how much you want to find Silver, but that was too risky. We don't know much about this planet's ocean and the creatures it holds. Not even the oceanographers here know what's deep down there." Delbert commented.

"Yes! I thought the academy had taught you better than that? That was a completely idiotic move!" the feline snapped.

Jim resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. He knew from experience that that was one of the woman's main pet peeves that she did not put up with, "I know it was dangerous, but I had to find that girl. She's met Silver. And if I didn't we might've walked right into our own deaths."

"What do you mean by that Jim?" Delbert asked, the serious father in him now replaced by the curious explorer.

The spacer sighed, and looked up at them. His eyes were hard. "Rangoon is on this planet. He's captured Silver."

There was a long pause. The two older spacers were trying to process this information. It wasn't something they wanted to believe. Amelia finally stepped forward, "are you sure?"

"Ariel told me. I highly doubt she'd even know who Rangoon was if it weren't true. I wasn't able to get all the information from her that I could. I just rushed as soon as I could back here to tell you two."

Delbert looked at his wife. She was now pondering their next course of action. Rangoon was not a pirate to be taken lightly. He was slippery and very cunning. She wondered if they should even attempt to take him on. She sighed, they would probably have no choice. It was either he or Silver that had whatever they needed to get back to their own dimension. The fact that they had received no word from their crew that the gate-way was open again meant that the brigand hadn't left yet.

"Alright. Mr. Hakwins, send B.E.N out to warn the crew. They must keep an eye open and report anything suspicious. No heroics though, or I'll hang them myself." Looking to her husband she added, "we should also warn our hosts. Prince Erik's people may be in danger. In fact I'm sure they are."

He nodded. They moved to leave and were at the door when Amelia turned one final time to Jim who was right behind her. "Mr. Hawkins, you are to keep an eye on Ariel."

"What? But Captain I can-!"

"No 'buts'! You found her, you care for her. If she reveals anymore clues let us know immediately. I will inform Prince Erik and Grimsby offyour new charge." With that she faced forward and formally exited the study. Delbert gave his young friend an apologetic look before following her out. Jim glared at their backs, but didn't argue further. His training at the academy taught him never to question a captain's orders. Really, had he argued the little bit that he just did at school he would have gotten punishment work for a week.

"Aye Captain." he mumbled as he shoved his hands into his pockets and headed for the dinning hall, a few feet behind them.

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Ariel silently giggled as the bubbles in her "bath" flew after she blew them out of her hands. Morph, who had followed them, chuckled and chased after them once he was able to turn back into a pink blob. These bubbles were a lot different then the ones in the sea. They stayed longer, and didn't pop so easily. They just floated on top of the warm water or attached themselves to her arms and belly. The bubbles also smelt very nice. Carlotta had left to find her a better change of clothes then Jim's big shirt and rough pants. Sebastian had managed to avoid detection and now scurried out from his hiding place. He looked at the bath water and decided against getting in. Instead he sat between a bunch of colorful bottles that Carlotta had used to make the strange bubbles.

The young princess seemed to be enjoying herself. Her curiosity was almost overloading. Anything she could reach, she had to touch and explore. He knew, she was probably planning on going back down the hallway they had come from to look at all the paintings and statues again when they were free. Carlotta had practically dragged the girl down it so fast, she hadn't had time to really take anything in. No one had explained anything to her either. The woman had just sat Ariel down, got the bath ready, then dumped her in. All the while talking about someone named Erik and how awful it was that Ariel was ship-wrecked. She was nice, even if she was oblivious.

The little crab sighed and looked up at the girl, "Ari-yel, is dis really what yah want? Are yah sure you'll be happy 'ere?"

Ariel stopped tickling Morphs middle and turned to her friend. She gave a sweet smile and nodded. Sebastian let out another sigh, but returned the smile. "Alright, I'll help yah find dat Silver guy. But I don't know about dat Jim. He seems a bit peculiar."

She knew what he meant. The young spacer seemed annoyed with the girls mere presence. She wondered if she had done something that upset him. It obviously wasn't something she said... but perhaps all that she couldn't say? It could even be he was just under a lot of stress with Silver's disappearance and Rangoon being there. She didn't know. Maybe this was just how he was... She hoped not.

"Arieeeel!" Came a loud cry. The three looked up in time to see Scuttle come whizzing through the large open and whirl around their heads excitedly. "Hey there you are sweetie! I've been lookin' all over for yah! Look at yah! Flounder wasn't jokin' when he said you got yourself a pair of walkers."

The bird finally landed at the top of the large pink structure on the right side of the tub that made it look like a giant clam. Morph oohed and flew up to the seagull. Scuttle ignored him as he continued to look down at the girl. "How's it going? Heard you had a rough time with that sea witch."

"Sea witch! Sea Witch!" Morph chanted as she transformed into a miniature version of Scuttle.

Ariel nodded as Sebastian glared up at the feather-brained bird. "What is it dat you want mon? Dat lady will be back any minute to check up on Ari-yel. I don't tink she'll be happy to see You 'ere."

"Oh! Right! Flounder wanted me to tell you that your sisters want ta see yah! Guess they found out about you being human now." Ariel cringed. That wasn't good.

Sebastian also paled some. Both were thinking the same thing; What if they told the king? Scuttle continued on, "they said to meet them down there by the water that comes in through the wall before sunset. Flounder is already there. He got stuck between those bars. I found him there and had to pull him through."

'_Great, this is going to be fun. I'm going to get it from Attina for sure.'_ Ariel thought as she threw her head down into her hand.

Hearing footsteps, they quickly shooed Scuttle out of the room, Sebastian went back to hiding, and Morph changed into a monkey again. Ariel wondered if the people of the castle weren't allowed to know about Morphs real form. She felt a little more connected in a way to the little guy. Same with the metal boy too. She wished she had the power to change back and forth. Then none of this would be necessary.

Soon Carlotta came into the room with a white garment. She helped Ariel out of the tub and dry off. She then slipped the cloth on and Ariel saw the front was left open. Carlotta used a rope like cloth to tie the front closed. The princess wished she could ask what kind of outfit this was, but didn't know how to get her question across to the bustling woman. Sebastian hopped into the pocket when the maid had her back turned and stayed quiet. Morph leapt onto Ariels shoulder and nuzzled the nice material.

"Come deary. I'll show you to your room where we can get you all prepared for supper." Carlotta said and motioned for the girl to follow. Starting to get the hang of this walking business, Ariel trailed after the woman a little less wobbly then before. At least she wasn't running into things anymore.

The two women strolled down the hallway, then turned into a different one. This one was a little less flashy. There were a few paintings on the walls, mostly of sceneries, and potted plants here and there but that was it. No metal bodies, or stone people like in the last one. The floor also had soft, red cloth on it, making it easier for Ariel to walk without slipping. Carlotta stopped at a large green door on the left and opened it. She allowed Ariel in first, then followed.

The princess gawked at the room. It looked just as bit as grand as the rest of the castle, but also felt quite homely. The bed looked so soft and inviting, making Ariel suddenly feel a bit tired. She had been up all night, being tricked by Ursula into a ridiculous contract. However, now wasn't the time for sleep apparently as Carlotta soon ushered her behind a screen The woman shooed Morph away, and took off Ariel's robe. She disappeared for a moment, then came back with a large pink garment.

"Here we are. I think this one will really suit you." the maid said, and began to help the girl into it. Ariel had no idea it took so much time and effort to get into what Carlotta called a dress. It seemed easier wearing the clothes Jim had lent her. But after much fussing and tugging, the beautiful gown was finally on. As were a pair of "stockings" and "heals." These gave Ariel a lot of trouble so the older woman brought out another pair that weren't so high. Carlotta then fetched another maid who began to work on Ariel's thick red tresses. The princess played with Morph, who was sitting in her lap, while the girl worked. Finally it seemed she was done.

"_I hope this isn't an everyday thing. It sure takes up a lot of time. I bet Alana would love it though._" Ariel thought as Carlotta and the woman named Amelia came into the room.

"I am to escort you to dinner. I hope that's alright?" Amelia said. Ariel nodded politely and smiled a little. This strong, stern woman made her a bit nervous. Even so, she also admired her a bit for that same strength and air of superiority.

"Very good." Amelia then directed her elbow towards the girl. Ariel stared at it for a moment then looked up at the woman, obviously puzzled. To her relief, Amelia seemed amused. She then guided Ariel's hand to wrap gently around her offered arm. After Morph jumped onto her shoulder, the captain then led the girl out of the room and the two gracefully glided down the hall.

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"Urchin!"

A sandy haired young merman turned away from the kelp forest he was about to enter to see who had called out to him. He was skinny, with rabbit like front teeth and a dark green tail. The boy waved as the rest of King Triton's daughters swam over to him. "Hey girls! Any luck finding Ariel?"

"Oh, we've had luck alright." Andrina stated, catching her breathe.

Urchin looked at them confused, "well? Where is she then?"

"You're never going to believe this." Aquata started, "but that idiot sister of ours actually made a deal with Ursula to become human so she can help find one and be with another."

... "What?"

Attina nodded solemnly. "It's true. She's staying at the human's castle right now. We need to get in there. Can you help us?"

"Woah, woah!" he cried, waving his hands in front of him. "I'm all for adventure and dangerous missions. But that's suicide. And what if you're dad finds out? My fins would be so fried!"

"Come on Urchin, you're the only one that can help us get in there!" Arista snapped as she crossed her arms. The rest all nodded and gave him pleading looks. The young merman backed away a bit, but really saw no way out of this. If he did help them, King Triton would surely kill him, but if he didn't then these girls would make him wish he was dead. Also, Ariel was a dear friend to him. He would never be able to forgive himself for not trying to help her when she desperately needed it.

With a sigh of defeat he asked, "what do you want me to do?"

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It was just no use. Even Grim could not talk Erik out of abandoning his quest for his "mystery woman" that saved him. Jim and B.E.N were sitting at the long table, completely bored at the topic at hand. Erik was gazing out of the large windows as Grimsby chattered away behind him. Delbert was looking rather uncomfortable as he stood near them, waiting for his wife to return. They had tried going over plans as to what they should do tomorrow. When Amelia was there, she had suggested that they use the day riding into the town and warn the people of Rangoon and his band of cutthroats. Erik assured them the people wouldn't panic. Living on the coast meant they were used to pirate threats. None of this magnitude, but they needn't know that... yet.

Jim didn't really care. His day would be spent trailing along, and babysitting the former mermaid. Not out looking for the pirates hideout and saving Silver like he wanted. He paused for a moment then smirked to himself at all he had just brooded on. "_Hmph,_ _Im acting like a spoiled brat,_" he thought. Hadn't he already got his wish by being able to even come here in the first place? And although she didn't know Silver's exact location, Ariel had helped out tremendously with her warnings. The spacer guessed he should be a bit more kind to her. He hadn't exactly been very fair to her ever since the beach.

Speaking of which, at that moment the grand doors opened and in stepped Amelia and Ariel. They were shadowed at first, but after they stepped into the light Jim suddenly felt uneasy. Having lived on a mining planet and in space most of his life, he didn't meet many humans. Least of all, very attractive female ones. Now here was a very pretty girl standing before him, looking like a princess right out of a fairy-tale. He gulped and looked down at his glass, cursing inwardly at himself for acting so stupid. He wasn't the only one though. The whole room had gone silent at the ladies entrance.

"Well don't all speak at once." Amelia said, her voice dripping with sarcasm. She had cleaned up too. Her new uniform was very fine and fit her like a glove. The only person that didn't seem to be under a spell was Grimsby, who walked over and took hold of Ariel's free hand.

"Ah, you are a vision my dear! And I must say Captain Amelia, you look striking as well." he complimented. Ariel blushed and bowed her head in a gesture of thanks.

"Thank you Grimsby. It's nice to know at least one man in this room can keep his head in the presence of ladies." Amelia stated, throwing a look at the other men as she allowed Grimsby to lead Ariel to a seat across from Jim.

Erik seemed to finally clear his thoughts and smiled kindly at Ariel, "you look wonderful." Again the girl blushed and gave her silent thanks. Delbert was now conversing with his wife who seemed to purposely be giving him a hard time at the moment. Jim remained silent as everyone sat down. Ariel looked over and smiled at him, he could only return with an awkward one back.

Grimsby tried to strike up a conversation once they were all settled. He talked about the kingdom and where they should go in town tomorrow. Jim was taking a sip of his water when he noticed Ariel looked excited about something on the table. She then picked up a fork and began brushing her hair with it. The boy snorted rather loudly into his cup which drew attention to their end of the table. At first they stared at him, then at the girl. She soon noticed their perplexed gazes and quickly put the fork down, looking thoroughly embarrassed.

"_This girl has a lot to learn._" Jim thought, trying to recover from nearly inhaling his water. Leaning towards her and using a hushed tone he said, "that's not used to brush your hair. It's used for eating."

When Ariel cocked her head to the side and gave him a puzzled look he told her to wait. When salads were brought out as an appetizer he demonstrated how to use the four pronged silverware. The girl picked hers back up and mimicked the boy. She enjoyed the salad greatly and even took some of B.E.N's for him since Morph was still on the other end of the table. Jim was just happy to get some food in his stomach. They had missed breakfast and lunch, though some rolls of bread and fruit were given to them a little while after getting to the castle. That had not nearly been enough for the spacer.

"So Ari, how did you meet Silver?" B.E.N asked nonchalantly. The girl thought for a second then motioned that she had been swimming and searching for something. She then flapped her hands up and down at her sides. "You were looking for a crazy person?"

"I think she's saying she was looking for a bird." Jim corrected. The girl nodded. The rest of the story was a lot harder to figure out. Eventually most of the highlights were understood and the story finished just as the main course was delivered. Jim had to call Morph over as soon as Ariel figured out that what was presented to her was stuffed crab. The shape-shifter happily sat on her lap and gobbled the food up. Jim felt bad for possibly eating one of her friends, but there wasn't even of Morph to go around. Especially when the little guy had to eat B.E.N's share as well.

Grimsby stood up once all the food was eaten and the plates cleared away. "Well, this has been an excellent evening, but we have a busy day tomorrow. Perhaps we should all get some rest." The others stood as well.

"Jim, will you escort Ariel to her room? There's a few more things I want to clear up before we go off to bed." Amelia asked.

Jim looked a little concerned, "you sure you don't need me?"

"Oh don't fuss, it's just plans about which routes to take and details like that. You and Ariel look asleep on your feet. Go on now."

Hearing as how it wasn't anything important, the now tired Jim motioned for the girl and android to follow him. Ariel carried Morph who was already asleep and had a bulge in his monkey belly from all the food. B.E.N ranted about what they were going to do tomorrow as they left the dinning room and entered the hallway. The girl listened intently as she walked along side the hyper hunk of metal. When they neared the end of the hall they found Carlotta waiting outside of Ariel's room with a small pink dress in hand. Jim suspected it was the girls nightwear.

"Let's get you out of that dress now deary. Wouldn't want to sleep in that would you." Ariel made a face which caused B.E.N to chuckle and Jim to smirk. Handing over the sleeping Morph she waved goodnight to the boys and entered her room.

"Night Ari!" the robot called out just before the door shut. "I like her. She's really nice."

"I guess so." Jim muttered. "Come on, I really need some sleep now."

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Chow!


	8. Fight or Flight

**Spirit-** Another update. You don't know how badly I wanted to post this chapter! I really like how it turned out. Some parts are slow, but you need them to lead up to the good ones. Anyway, hope you all like it too! The next few chapters may take awhile to come out as I have a lot going on this summer. I'll do the best that I can though!

SPECIAL THANKS to** Aggressively Hospitable, theBlackOrange, AJtheWeird,** **and Beforethedawnbreaks** for the reviews!

Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes!

**Side Note:** The order of Ariel's sisters ages is pretty much the same as the first movie, but I dumped up Attina. I always thought she was the oldest, and was surprised she wasn't, so I just made it her. It fits better anyways(at least for my story), but everyone else remains the same as the original film.

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**Chapter SEVEN: Fight or Flight**

It was a calm morning. The sea sparkled under the sun's early light. The air smelt of brine and flowers as they were waking up. Birds sang greetings to each other as they clustered in the large tree that grew in the courtyard. Ariel's balcony hung over this square. Said girl was leaning on the railing, taking this beautiful morning in. She had slept wonderfully on the soft bed in her room, with dreams of running on clouds and chasing stars. Silver had appeared in her dream. He sailed his ship in the sky alongside her and waved. When she woke up, she felt more determined then ever to find him. Still, the events of what happened after dinner last night worried her a bit.

88 Flashback 88

When Carlotta had finished helping Ariel into her pink nightgown and left, the girl placed her ear to the door and listened. Sebastian, who had stayed in her room during dinner, did the same. When both were satisfied with the silence outside the room, Ariel cautiously opened the door and the two peeked out. The crab scurried a little into the hallway to get a better look around. Seeing that the coast was clear he turned back to the girl and motioned with his claw for her to come on out. Closing the door softly behind her, the princess picked up her friend and headed down the corridor.

The sun was nearly set, she hoped her sisters were still at the castles second courtyard that was at sea level. She had seen how to get there from the other maids. As quietly as she could, Ariel made her way to the stairs and slowly made her way down. Going up stairs was easy, but going down them was a bit scary. Her new legs wobbled so much that at one point she just gave up and sat down. She then began to crawl down them, feet first instead. Though it was awkward, it was much less stressful.

Finally she made it to the next floor and got back up. "Ari-yel, are you sure dis is da right way?" Sebastian asked from his perch on her shoulder.

She nodded and pointed to the wooden and iron rod door on the other side of the room, slightly hidden away from view by a curtain. Upon opening it, the two were met with a cool sea breeze. They had made it to the gardens. Heading towards the wall, she soon found where the ocean was able to slip in and meet with the sand on this side. There was no sign of anything in the water, but it was a little more dark now, making the wall cast it's large shadow on the this part of the gardens.

"Flounder?... Attina?" Sebastian whispered as Ariel drew closer to the water.

Suddenly there was a "psst." The two looked around, but didn't see the source. It came again, but this time someone also spoke. "Psst, Ariel over here. Behind the bushes."

Looking to her left Ariel found three large shrubs close to the water's edge. A hand popped up and waved to her. She walked over and looked on the other side. She was very surprised to find Urchin there. The boy had beached himself and had used the bush for cover from anyone that might've come out to see the garden.

"Urchin? What are you doin' 'ere?" Sebastian asked.

"Oh don't worry, the girls are here too. They're just waiting in deeper water for my signal." he explained. He then tossed three small pebbles, one right after the other at the water towards the first hole in the castle wall. Soon seven heads slowly popped out. Six were Ariel's sisters and the seventh was Flounder.

The group swam over, but stayed in the water. Urchin backed himself up until he was mostly submerged as well. Ariel sighed inwardly then counted down from 3 in her mind. When she got to 1;

"Ariel what were you thinking?" Attina whispered harshly. "You could've been killed! Those humans could've chopped you into a million pieces and ate you for lunch!"

"Thanks for the imagery Attina." Andrina commented dryly.

Ariel blew her bangs and rolled her eyes. She knew her eldest sister was going to react like this. Using the sand she wrote, "I trust Silver and Jim." This only seemed to irk the next heir to the throne even more.

Sebastian quickly jumped from Ariels shoulder to land in between the two parties. "Girls, girls, please. Lets not fight."

"Sebastian, I can't believe you let her do this!" Attina nearly yelled. Her sisters all quickly clamped her mouth shut and hushed her.

"Do you want to wake up the humans?" Urchin snapped quietly.

Shuffling was heard and they turned to see Ariel had erased her last message and was writing a new one. When she was finished, it read "How did you all get in here?"

"Urchin got us in." Arista piped. "He used a powder he had to dissolve some of the bars away."

Raising a brow at the boy she found he wasn't looking at her. He now seemed highly interested in the bushes he was hiding behind earlier. If she guessed right, he had either boughten or stolen this "magic" powder from the black market that resided a few miles outside of Atlantica. Ariel hated when he went there. It was a great temptation to return to his old ways, and she always scolded him for it.

"So what are the terms to this contract anyway?" Aquata asked, drawing Ariel's attention back to the matter at hand.

"Ari-yel has to find dis Silver mon, who was kidnapped by space pirates, and get Jim to fall in love wit her in five days or she belongs to da sea-witch." Sebastian explained.

"It has to be Ariel that finds him too, so we can't help really. And Jim has to give her a kiss of true love, or it doesn't count." continued Flounder. Hearing all of this now, Ariel felt completely embarrassed. At the terms and her own stupidity. The looks her sisters and Urchin were giving her were not helping any either.

Attina crossed her arms, her brows were furrowed, and her emerald eyes were piercing. However, the girl remained quiet. As furious as she was, she wasn't one to display her temper to others. She just silently seethed, which made Ariel vaguely wonder if she would soon start to make the water around her boil. She hated that she had disappointed her big sister so much. Her foolery had put them all in danger. Looking at the rest of her sisters she frowned and hung her head in shame. If she had her voice she would be telling them she knew how stupid she was for going through with this and would be apologizing over and over again. As it was, she could only stand their and mope. There was complete silence for awhile, until someone finally sighed.

"... I guess we have no choice. We'll help in any way we can Ariel." All heads snapped to Attina. The mermaid looked a little less angry and more sympathetic now. Tears brimmed at the younger girl's eyes. She looked at the rest of her sisters to see what they thought.

"Argh! You just can't help getting into trouble can you?" Adella asked, scowling at her younger sister. But that quickly turned into a smirk. "Guess we'll have to help fish you out of this mess."

"Yeah, you're not smart enough to handle all of this." Andrina teased which made Ariel throw a quick glare her way.

Alana turned to the oldest, "so what's the plan Attina?"

"Alright. We can't help Ariel look for Silver, but maybe we can find clues as to where he is. Andrina and Aquata will do that. Adella, Alana, I want you two to tag along as much as you can with Ariel. If you go close to the coast Ariel, send Flounder to get them. They can help you with Jim. I'll keep an eye on father." the orange finned girl instructed.

"What about us?" Urchin asked, referring to himself and Arista.

Attina looked hesitant then said, "you two need to see if there's a way out of this contract incase all else fails. I don't really like the idea, but we can't let Ursula get Ariel. It's our father she really wants, and she's using our sister to get to him. "

The two nodded, and seemed ready for their mission. The group then turned back to the red headed girl and crab. "Alright, Ariel, Sebastian, Flounder, tell us everything we may need to know about Silver, Jim, and these pirates."

88 End Flashback 88

When all was said and done, the merpeople had left the castle to return to Atlantica. Flounder remained there to aid Ariel as much as he could. Sebastian stayed as well, but he would be with her at all times. Though the plan seemed well enough, Ariel was worried about everyone's safety. Adella and Alana would be close to the humans when ever they followed her, and Arista and Urchin were bound to take drastic measures. Andrina and Aquata may get captured by Rangoon if he finds them snooping around.

"_Ugh! This is all too much. Why couldn't I be more like them and stay at the palace all day?_" she thought.

A small voice in the back of her head whispered, "_but you're not them. You're you. And that's way more fun!_"

"_Yeah, well, it's not really any fun right now._" Ariel threw back.

"Ari-yel?" The girl turned her attention away from the scenery and down to the carpeted floor at the open door. Sebastian was looking up at her from there. He had finally woken up and had scurried over. "You o-kay child?"

She nodded and put on a smile for him. Picking the little crab up, she headed back into her room. It wasn't long before there was a knock at the door. Ariel opened it to find Carlotta there. She had another dress in her hands. This time a smaller, blue one with a blue bow resting on top of it. The red head smiled at her and let her in. As she closed the door she made a disgruntled face. She really hoped this dress wouldn't be as much work to get into as the dinner one.

"_Well, here we go._" She thought.

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Two carriages were ready and waiting for the prince and Amelia's group out in the front courtyard. Erik, Amelia, and Delbert took the leading one, while Jim, Ariel, and B.E.N took the second. Morph sat on Ariel's lap and poked at the bulge in the girl's pocket that was Sebastian. When all was ready the large gates were opened and they, along with a small company of guards, rode out. Jim was thankful that this planets city transportation wasn't much different then his home worlds as he was the one put in charge of steering the horses. Glancing next to him, the spacer saw Ariel's eyes were wide with excitement as she took the horses, the buggy, the officers, and everything else in. He and B.E.N nearly had a heart attack when the girl decided to climb on the back and nearly tumbled out as she tried to look at what was going on underneath the cab.

The soldiers that rode next to them snickered at the trio. Ariel didn't seem to understand what she had done wrong, B.E.N was wailing about how they almost lost her (though that wasn't at all true), and Jim just felt like hiding in the deepest hole he could find. However the red head sat still for the rest of the ride into the town and the robot eventually changed topics. When they reached the town square all got out of their carriages and met at the fountain.

"Alright, we're going to split up. Most of the guards will go their own way and inform the townspeople. The three of us will start here. Jim, your party is too look for clues. See if anyone has noticed anything strange happening around here in the past few months." Amelia instructed.

"Aye Captain." Jim responded seriously. It was the kind of mission he was hoping to get.

"Good, Prince Erik, by your command?" The woman asked.

He nodded and looked towards his guards, "you know your duties, move out." They saluted then went to work. He looked at Jim and smiled encouragingly, "good luck Jim."

"Thanks." it was nice to see the Erik he had first met was back. Not the love-sick mess he was awhile ago. The groups split up. The adults headed towards the more populated areas while Jim and his gang went to the nearest shop.

The market place was huge. Shopkeepers and merchants cried out their bargains to the people that walked by. Many smells wafted together and filled the peoples noses; flowers, cooked meats, freshly caught fish, and the ocean. Children played in the street or listened to stories the elders told in corners out of the way of the shoppers and wagons. Birds gathered around trash cans and feasted on the scraps there. The place was so lively and crowded that it was hard to keep up with everything.

While Ariel, Morph, and B.E.N explored all the market had to offer, Jim asked around about anything unusual happening. Most people hadn't seen anything, while others just complained about their neighbors. They had covered the whole market street when Jim finally called for a break. He bought himself and Ariel some lunch and they sat back down at the fountain. The spacer was feeling put out. No clues had been found so far, and half the day was nearly spent. Perhaps the market wasn't the best place to look for a band of sneaky pirates.

"I guess we should go closer to the ocean." Jim commented before looking over at Ariel, who was thoroughly enjoying her kabob. "What do you think?"

After thinking about it a little, she swallowed the bit of vegetable she had been chewing and nodded. Sebastian poked his head out of her pocket. "Head towards da forest by da sea. Dere are plently of places for dem to hide in dere."

"Some of the farmers surrounding it might've seen something too Jimmy." B.E.N pointed out.

"Alright, lets go. We'll take the carriage with us so we can get there faster." Jim said, the group nodded in agreement. Getting back in the carriage, Jim clicked the reigns and turned the horses to the dirt path that led out of the town. It was a lot quieter in the country side. The spacer preferred that. Soon the fields and houses cut away on their left and a cliff, that dropped down to a small strip of beach, lead to the sea. The only sounds audible were the clopping of the horses hoofs, the song birds in the scattered trees, or the rustle of the tall grass as the breeze blew through them.

Ariel seemed to like it too... though really she seemed to like everything. "You don't really know much about life on land do yah?" Jim asked her. The girl turned her blue eyes to him and shook her head a bit sadly. "Well don't feel bad. I don't know much about life under the sea... Or really on this planet either."

At that, Ariel pointed to him then the sky. He looked up, hoping to see the stars, but there was only blueness and the occasional white fluffy cloud. He faced the road ahead again, a little homesick now. "Yeah... I'm from space." The red head stared at the boy. She could tell he was missing his world. She was missing hers a bit as well.

Movement in the field next to her caught the girl's eye and she began to wave her hands wildly in the air. This caused Jim to pull the reigns to stop and a man, who had been collecting wheat, to look up. He had a weathered face from working in the sun all day. His beard, mustache, and what scraggly hair poked out from under his straw hat were white with a peppering of black.

"Did you folks need help with something?" He asked kindly.

"Thanks Ariel," Jim whispered to her, then stood up in the carriage and called out, "a little. We were wondering if you've noticed anything strange recently? Uh, pirates have been spotted near the coast, and they may have docked somewhere around these parts."

"Pirates huh? Haven't had any trouble with that sort in awhile. Sorry, I'm afraid I haven't seen anything." he replied.

The groups faces fell. Jim nodded, "alright, thanks."

He sat back down and was about to click the reigns when that man yelled out, "Wait!" they all looked over as he came running over to them. "I forgot. Something strange did happen about a month ago at night, but I'm not sure it has anything to do with your pirates. There was a golden light that flew over the ocean and disappeared in the forest over there."

He pointed out towards the ocean on the left. There they saw where the coast curved outwards towards the water. A dark group of trees rest there before becoming beach. "The forest is really dense over there. Towards the winter hunters use it for larger game. No one really goes in there during warmer weather since all the easier game come out to the fields." The man continued to explain. "You may find something there, but be careful. Those woods are pretty tricky without the help of pirates. Stick to the road."

Jim nodded, "thanks sir." Ariel waved kindly to the man as Jim got the horses going. The man wished them luck and waved back.

The group soon entered the woods. Jim had half expected them to be all creepy and dangerous looking, but it was actually pretty pleasant. Plenty of light still came through and the path seemed to continue on for them. Morph turned back to his pink blob self and flew off a little ahead of them to explore the area. The sound of waves reached them from somewhere behind the trees. Some branches drooped downwards and Ariel couldn't help but reach out and touch them. She had seen trees like this before, but never got a chance to go near them as humans always liked to hide behind their leafy curtains.

They soon crossed a bridge over a very large trench and entered a darker part of the forest. The path took a sharp left then went forward again when they reached the cliff. "_Merchants probably use this path to get around when they can't afford sea passage._" Jim thought to himself. "_it's a lot safer then trying to make a road that goes straight through those woods." _

Suddenly Morph came shooting back and rammed into Ariel's chest. Jim immediately stopped the carriage and looked to see what was up. The little guy was whimpering and now hiding behind Ariel's thick red hair, once again in his monkey form. This was bad. Hardly anything actually frightened the little transformer. What exactly was up ahead?

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Adella and Alana were sticking to the coast as close as they dared to go. They had seen their younger sister leave the castle, disappear into the human town, then reappear again on the road leading out of it several hours latter. They had no idea were Flounder or Scuttle were at the moment and were starting to lose their nerve. Unlike their other sisters, they weren't exactly that keen on getting so close to the world they had pretty much feared since birth.

"I don't care how cute that Jim guy is! How can Ariel be so calm around all those fish killers?" Adella finally cried out from their hiding place behind the protruding rocks.

"I don't know... but you heard Attina. We have to make sure Ariel gets this guy to love her in case Urchin and Arista don't find a loophole." Alana pointed out.

The orange mermaid huffed, "well I don't know if there's much we can do from all the way over here. They disappeared into those trees like 15 minutes ago. Who knows, maybe they started moving away from the sea."

"Nah, look!" At that Alana pointed to a red, wooden railing a few yards away on the cliff top. Within moments their sisters ride pulled into sight and once again started moving parallel to the beach. The two girls ducked down and moved to follow them when Jim suddenly made the big brown beasts stop. They halted as well. Seeing other movement, they hide behind another rock and looked out. There was a trail the led up from the beach to the top of the cliff. Five strange creatures were making their way up to Ariel's group.

"W-what the heck are those things? They aren't human... are they?" The younger of the two asked.

Adella shook her head as she strained to get a better look at them, "no... Look! They turned into humans!" She was correct, the creepy group now had the pale or tan skin and in some cases, only two legs to mimic the humans. It then clicked. "Those have to be some of the pirates Flounder told us about! We have to warn Ariel somehow before she gets hurt!"

"But how?" Alana asked, beginning to panic. Adella looked around for something, anything to get her sisters attention. She was running out of time, the pirates had already started approaching Ariel's group.

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The five, now human, brigands quietly made their way up most of the goat trail to the top. They looked like they'd seen better days. Their clothes were dirty and had rips and tears everywhere. The leader was bald, and had many scars on his head. The others had their own decorations of really harsh times on their skins as well. They had been sent to scout out the area and take any new kind of weapon they could find or capture any creature that might be worth something on the black market. Human's weren't that common anymore in their worlds, so they'd fetch a high price as slaves. The band soon spotted the carriage and the three human's it had with it. The opportunity was too good to miss.

As soon as they established a plan and concealed their guns they made their way up. Now the bald leader signaled for them to act casual as they were about to make their presence known to the group who had stopped. The older boy and the girl had gotten out of their ride. The redhead went to sooth the horses while the boy looked around suspiciously. The leader smiled and began to walk calmly up the trail, quickly drawing the boys attention with his footsteps.

"Ello there lad. Sorry if we frightens you." the man said, after "spotting" Jim. "oh, and your pretty lass as well."

He pretended that he had just seen Ariel too, who was staying by the horses and watching the group, a little skeptical. Jim nodded a greeting to the leader. "It's alright. You more so startled our horses."

"Sorry about that mate. We was hoping you might have a bit o'food to give us poor gents. We've been wanderin' around these parts for days. Without any lines to fish of spears to hunt, it's a bit hard to get anything to eat yah see." the man continued. His friends nodded and mumbled their agreements.

The spacer shook his head. "Sorry, we don't. There's a town a little ways back. You can find food there."

"How about a bit o'water then? This blasted sun has made us parched."

The boy seemed hesitant. It was obvious he didn't trust them. Neither did the girl or other boy who had come a little bit more forward. The girl was holding a monkey in her hands that stared at them fearfully. The monkey then grabbed the girls chin to make her look at him and began pointing at the disguised pirates as it chattered. It looked like they would have to cut the fun short and quickly apprehend the three humans and their pets.

The leader of the group grinned at the kids as he walked closer to Jim, "well, don't worry about it lad. We'll get what we need soon then." He was about to reach for his gun that was stuck half in his pants behind him when a rock suddenly hit him in the right temple. "Ow! What the-?" he yelled as he looked out towards the beach to see who had done that.

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"Nice shot Adella!" Alana congratulated her sister as they ducked down into the water to hide from the pirate's sight.

The older girl smiled triumphantly, "thanks!"

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When the man had turned to see who had thrown the rock it was then Jim noticed the guys laser pistol sticking out from his pants. His training from the academy immediately took over. With lightning speed he spun the guy around and grabbed the gun. When the man turned back to make a swipe at Jim, he caught his arm and punch him squarely in the jaw, knocking the man down. Jim then fired the pistol at a overhanging tree branch that snapped off and fell onto the rest of the group. They tried to recover quickly as they all took out their own weapons.

"Run!" Jim yelled to his group. B.E.N grabbed Ariel's hand and pulled her back onto the carriage as Jim continued to fire, running half backwards as he made his way to them. Morph changed back and flew out of Ariel's hands and over to the pirates. He whizzed around their heads, distracting them from shooting at his friend. Jim finally jumped onto the carriage as Ariel took the reigns and turned the horses back the way they had come. The four beasts took off back down the path.

"Forget the blob! Get them!" The leader barked at his fellow pirates after he recovered from the punch. Morph chuckled and flew after his friends as the pirates followed.

Jim decided to let Ariel steer the horses as he faced the back. This time he picked his shots. Aiming for the pirates weapons or hands so that they would drop them. He had to push Ariel's head down and out of the way of the laser bullets several times. The marauders had by now turned off their disguises, which the boy noted where in their earrings. He also saw what made them so fast, their alien bodies were built for speed. They were quickly catching up, and what was worse, Jim's laser pistol was running low.

"Jimmy, what are we gonna do?" the robot, who was also facing the pirates way, asked.

Jim fired again, hitting one alien in the leg to stop his pursuit. "We just have to reach the fields! They won't follow us there!"

"But they're gaining on us!"

"Give up human brats!" one of the three pirates left yelled. "We'll get you in the end!"

"Just try it!" Jim yelled back, firing at the guy who jumped out of the shots way.

B.E.N, who had faced forward again, now started flipping out in the middle seat about something Jim wasn't really taking the time to hear. It wasn't until he noticed that the road had gotten incredibly bumpy did he really look around. They had gone off the trail which had turned leading back to the bridge they had crossed earlier. Looking ahead, all color drained from his face. The trench was coming up.

"Ariel?" he said in a worried tone of voice. Looking at the girl he saw a determined look in her eyes and a smirk on her face. "_Oh shit! She's really going to do it!_" he thought and quickly braced himself.

The android gave out a girlish scream while Morph whooped at all the excitement. Here it came. The horses jumped, the carriage bucked, then they were flying in the air for about 2 seconds. The horses then touched down on the other side of the trench and continued running. The cab landed harshly, causing all but Morph and Ariel to get tossed around in it. It was a miracle the wheels didn't pop off from the impact or that anyone fell out. Quickly entangling himself from B.E.N, Jim sat back on the seat and looked back. The pirates were unable to follow and were left standing on the other side, shaking their claws or fists as they cursed rudely after them.

Jim couldn't help it. The fear was gone, now replaced with a sense of victory. "WooHooo! Yeah!" He cheered, pumping his fist in the air. The boy then started laughing as he sunk back into his spot. Morph copied his movements as a mini him. Turning to Ariel, Jim found she had the biggest smile on her face. "That was awesome! I can't believe you just did that!

She gave him a look that said: "Oh please, that was nothing!"

"I can't believe we survived! Oh My HERO!" B.E.N cried and threw himself at the girl in a hug. Her face crinkled in silent laughter.

"Jeez mon! Do you want to give me a 'eart attack?" came a voice from Ariel's pocket. "What da heck is going on out dere?"

"We ran into some of Rangoon's lackeys. But Ariel left them in the dust." Jim explained, smiling at the girl once again. Ariel blushed at his compliment and kept her eyes forward. If she looked at that gorgeous smile one more time she would probably melt and puddle at their feet.

Sebastian came crawling out of her pocket. "Dat doesn't surprise me young lady." he remarked, "But next time, be a bit more gentle."

She nodded and patted the crab on the head as the others laughed. The trees finally broke away to the dirt road and wheat fields once more. Jim took back the reigns and slowed the horses from a trot to a walk now. Even if the pirates caught up with them, they wouldn't risk an attack on so open of ground. Especially with the royal guards and Prince Erik up ahead. Wait, what?

"Uh-oh." B.E.N said as he slunk down in his middle seat.

They pulled up to the large group which were looking at them oddly before Amelia asked, "Are you all alright?"

Jim vaguely wondered why she sounded so concerned, then looked at the others with him. They all did look rather disheveled. Ariel's hair was looking rather wind blown and her blue bow was coming undone. B.E.N's shirt was hanging off one shoulder and there was a hole in his right sleeve from where a laser bullet nearly got him. Jim could now feel his hair was sticking up at odd places and his face and shirt were sweaty. Only Morph the monkey looked alright, Sebastian had gone back into his hiding place. "Uh... well."

"This gentlemen informed one of the guards that he heard shouting and strange gun fire coming from the woods, and how you three had went in not too long ago. We were about to go looking for you all." Amelia continued. Jim, Ariel, and B.E.N looked behind her to see the man they had spoken too before entering the forest. He seemed worried about them.

Ariel smiled and bowed her head in a thanks. Jim nodded to him, then looked back at his captain. "We ran into a pirate scouting party. They open fired on us, but we managed to escape."

"No doubt they're gone now, but we should search the woods anyways." Erik said, gazing gravely at his forests. "Officer Glids, please escort Ariel, Jim, and B.E.N back to the castle and get a bigger troop together. We don't have long before the sun starts to go down. I don't want to be searching in the dark."

"Yes, Your Majesty!" The officer saluted and nodded for Jim to follow him. Though he wanted to aid in the search, the spacer suddenly felt exhausted. Without complaint he steered the horses and headed back to the castle. He heard the others thank the farmer and begin making plans to enter the woods. Looking to his left he found everyone else to look tired as well. A soft rumble made Ariel blush, and it occurred to Jim that it was almost dinner time. He smiled at his group. "We'll get food to eat and some shut eye once we get back to the palace.

"Sounds good to me Jimmy." B.E.N said. "Though I don't really do either of those things."

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"So it was you who threw da rock Adella?" Sebastian asked. Himself, Ariel, and Morph were sitting in the gardens, hidden behind the same shrubs from last night. After getting back to the castle and eating a small early dinner, Jim had gone to hang out in his room while Ariel decided to check on her sisters. Adella, Alana, and Flounder were in the water. The orange finned girl looking quite proud of herself.

"Yep, we saw those freaks turn human and head up to you guys." she explained.

"It was so nerve wrecking trying to find a way to get your attention without getting theirs. Lucky Adella could throw that far, and she nailed that pirate right in the head!" Alana went on while petting Morph, who had taking a liking to her and was snuggling into the crook of her neck.

Ariel beamed at her older sister. She didn't know the girl had it in her. Sebastian then told the sea dwellers what happened after they had disappeared through the trees. B.E.N had relaid the whole event to him over dinner and Morph helped the story by transforming into things as the crab spoke. The girls and Flounder listened with interest. Ariel thought about those events and the after effects as well.

Jim no longer treated her like she was useless. In fact, he had been a lot more open with her at dinner. He told her about the last time he had been in a big fight like that. It was on Treasure Planet and against Silver and his cronies. The boy asked her if she'd been in any other situations like the one today. At that she really wished she had a voice, so she could tell him all the adventures she had in the sea. Explaining with gestures was really annoying and it didn't help that B.E.N kept crying out completely wrong guesses. Jim always seemed to understand what she was saying though, or at the least he came pretty close.

"What's that dreamy smile for?" came Alana's cheeky voice to draw Ariel back to reality.

The redhead looked around, to see everyone grinning at her. She gulped, which made Adella's grin grow bigger. "Thinking about a certain boy? I bet that trench stunt you pulled definitely earned you some bonus points with him."

Alana chuckled, "he seems like he'd go for the adventure girl type, doesn't he?"

This caused Ariel's checks to go a little red, which made her sisters only tease her more. Thankfully Sebastian came to her rescue and asked Flounder where he had been during their little escapade that day. The fish explained that Andrina and Aquata had needed him to lead them to Silver's island to look for any more clues. They also explored his sunken ship some more, but so far hadn't found anything. That reminded Ariel, now that she was human she could look for clues on the land there. There was bound to be something. Relaying her plan to the others, they agreed to meet there tomorrow. Now all she had to do was inform Jim.

**88888**

Chow!


	9. Day 3, Part I

**Spirit-** Sorry it's a little late. I was having trouble with this one. When I first wrote it, it just didn't feel complete. So what I'm going to do is divide Day 3 up into 2 parts. I hope that works. The next chapter might be out late too, but I'll do my best. Anyways, I hope you like it!

SPECIAL THANKS to** Aggressively Hospitable, Grimlock the King of Stories, OiToThWorld,** **and Beforethedawnbreaks** for the reviews!

Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes!

**88888**

**Chapter EIGHT: **

**The Thrill Seeking Spacer and The Feisty Mermaid**

**Day 3- Part I**

"You sure it's that way?" Jim asked Ariel. The two were on the beach just outside of the castle. The spacer was getting his solar surfer ready while the redhead made sure of their location.

Climbing up a few rocks she looked off into the west. There, just barely visible, was a dark dot. That had to be Silver's island. If it wasn't, it was sure close to where he had once resided. Ariel climbed down, reveling in the fact that she got to wear pants today instead of a dress. She loved the dresses, but they weren't exactly ideal for all these little exploits. Amelia noticed that when she and the rest of the search party returned late last night. The blue dress Ariel had worn the other day was slightly dirty and very crumpled after the flight from the pirates. The feline requested that Carlotta find something more suitable for the girl in case something like that should happen again. She now wore tawny breeches, that were tucked into a pair of black boots borrowed from Amelia. Her blouse was a light blue, and had a black bustier much like her dress from yesterday. She also kept the bow in her hair as it kept most of it out of her face.

Walking back up to Jim she nodded at his question. "Alright." he said, then started up the motor. It rumbled and spat out a puff of smoke. Ariel watched in awe as the glowing sail erected and the whole thing began to hover a foot off the ground.

"This things gonna go a bit fast, so you're gonna have to hold on tight." Jim explained as he jumped on and secured his foot in the only metal strap. He helped the girl on and made sure her hands were gripping the rail properly. "Ok, ready?"

Looking to make sure her stance was exactly like Jim's, she then looked up and gave a nod. He raised a brow at her, and as a test, took of along the shoreline. They had barely made it five feet before the girl spooked at the sudden throw back from the speed and accidently lost her hold. She fell back and landed on her bottom in the water. A wave came up and hit her back, throwing her forward as it washed over her. Ariel scrambled to get up, only to slip and fall in again. Hearing laughing she looked up to see Jim, still abroad his space board, hovering above her.

"_Well, I'm glad he finds this funny._" she snapped in her mind as she pulled seaweed out of her hair. Finally she was able to stand up and threw a glare his way.

He jumped down and walked over to her. "Sorry, you ok?"

As a reply, she flipped her head around violently, showering him with all the water that her hair was holding. "Hey!" he yelled, trying to shield his face from the onslaught of sea water.

Ariel mouthed a "Ha!" at him, before wringing the rest of the water out of her hair and clothes. Jim gave her a quick sour look as he wiped his face with his shirt. He then walked over to his surfer and hopped on. Satisfied that she couldn't make herself any dryer, Ariel followed. Jim pulled her up once more, and she gripped the bar. He gave her a questioning look to which she nodded to. She was ready for it this time. Smirking, Jim faced forward and stepped on the accelerator. They shot forward, a little faster than last time, but Ariel had been expecting that. Jim had wanted her to fall off again as revenge for giving him a shower. Well, he was going to have to try harder than that.

Veering away from the beach they picked up speed. They weren't allowed to fly very high until they got out of sight from land. This, however, did not stop Jim from zig-zagging wildly just a few feet above the crystal blue waters. He had missed the thrill of flying. The last time he had been on his solar surfer he had been on a mission to find the mysterious mermaid that somehow knew him. Now, he had a little time to kill as they made their way to the island to search for clues.

Several times, he glanced back to see how Ariel was doing. The girl was beaming. Her fears had left her and she was enjoying the ride as much as he was. Checking behind her, he saw the beach was almost completely out of sight. That was enough for him. It was time to kick it up a notch. Yelling over the wind, he told the red head to hold on tight. Tilting back, he drove them upwards into the sky.

Ariel's stomach dropped a little as they climbed. She wanted to grab onto the boy, but was too afraid to let go. A fall now would really hurt, even if she did just land in the water. Jim gave a sudden battle cry which drew her attention away from the height. "Here we go!"

The sail dropped down, leaving nothing to hold onto. The boy quickly grabbed hold of her around the waist, leaned them forward, and then, they were falling. Ariel clung onto Jim for dear life as the board began spinning as they dropped from the sky. She let out a silent scream when she saw the ocean getting closer rapidly. Jim started laughing, and she began to wonder if he had gone crazy.

"Lean back... Now!" He yelled. She did as he instructed, and the board just barely missed hitting the blue water. The sail had popped up and Jim was hanging onto it again. Ariel however, was still hanging onto him, having not quite gotten over what had just happened. Also, she was trapped between his two arms as he gripped the sails bar. The spacer looked down at her with an evil smile on his face.

"You look a little pale?" he said in an amused tone.

Ariel narrowed her eyes and stuck her tongue out at him, which only earned her a laugh. Her heart was still beating a million miles per second, and she really just wanted to push him into the sea and leave him there. Still, she had to admit that had been pretty fun. She had never experienced anything that thrilling in her life. Next time she hoped for a bit more warning and explaining before hand though. At that she gave him an endearing smile to show she, was in fact, alright. To what was now her amusement, his cheeks turned a light shade of red and he looked away. He moved his right arm so she could get back to her spot next to him and take hold of the railing herself.

"Uh, is um, that it?" He asked awkwardly as he pointed to a group of rocks ahead.

The redhead peaked out from behind him and surveyed the area. Yes, that had to be it. Giving an affirmative nod, Jim picked up speed again and steered them over to the small island. It didn't take long to reach it and land. Not much was left on the island to indicate anyone had been there. The high tides had washed some things away while others were caught among the rocks and dead coral. If there had been any clues, they might not exist now.

Jim immediately began to look around. He fished out anything that had once belonged to Silver to see if there was any indicator as to what happened and where he was. The sheet he had just untangled from a few sharp rocks had holes in it with black edges. It looked like Ariel was right about the pirates coming here, but why take Silver? Why not just kill him? Did he have information on something they needed?

Turning to Ariel he asked, "Ariel, do you know why the pirates are after Silver?" She hesitated, then nodded. She then drew a box shape in the air with two of her fingers. "A box? No... A chest."

She nodded again.

"He knows something about a chest... a treasure chest?" This time a shake of the head. "There's no treasure..." This greatly puzzled the spacer. What could be so important to the pirates that was in a chest?

Leaning up against a rock he continued trying to figure it out. Ariel was doing some pondering of her own. She didn't know how to describe that the chest was how they all got here. Nor did she want to mention that she knew where it was. If Rangoon got a hold of it, then they were all in great danger. Most likely the pirates thought Silver still had it hidden somewhere. He did possess the key, which they no doubt now have. Perhaps she should have Flounder get the chest and she could hide it somewhere in the castle? No, moving it was too risky. The pirate gang they had run into yesterday was on the shore. They might be watching it for any sign of where Silver might have hidden the chest.

"_I wonder it Andrina and Aquata have found anything yet?"_ she thought. _"If only daddy hadn't destroyed that message Silver had left!"_

Hearing shuffling, Ariel was drawn out of her thought and looked around. Jim was climbing up one of the rocks to the side where Silver had once kept the long boat. Ariel followed him, climbing up on a rock next to his that was a bit smaller. To her surprise more than half of the boat was still there, tied to the boulders. It looked really damaged and the front end was missing. Barnacles had claimed some of it, while seaweed collected all around the vessel.

"Wait here." Jim said as he took off his boots and socks. Ariel nodded. When he was down to his pants, he jumped into the water and swam over to the boat. He pulled the sea weed away from the front and surveyed the damage. "A ships cannon didn't do this... looks like a laser riffle."

Ariel rose a brow in question when he looked up at her. "The pirates ship wasn't here. Most likely they snuck up with their own long boats, sabotaged Silver's, then ambushed him." There was a moments pause then, "I bet their real ship isn't even on the planet. They might have left it in space. Come on!"

He climbed out of the water with Ariel's help and began putting his shirt back on. "Our ship might be able to pick theirs up if it's in orbit. We have to try at least." The girl gave a determined nod, and the two slide down back onto the sand bar. Jim readied the solar surfer and soon the duo was heading back towards land.

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In the thick of the woods and grass laid a small clearing near a cave. An assortment of creatures lounged about in the dirt or in the trees. They looked like the worse batch of cutthroats anyone had ever seen. Many were very muscular and gigantic. Others were lean, but looked like they'd be the sort to slit your throat while you slept. Some were busy cleaning their laser weapons or swords, while others watched, with wicked laughter in their eyes, as a few of their comrades were being scolded. The group that had gone out scouting yesterday, had returned with some not so pleasant news for their captain. Said man was now giving the party a look that could skin an elephant.

"And you let them escape?" He snarled, his already red skin going even redder with rage.

The bald leader of the band took a step back, "the boy knew how to work my pistol. It caught us off guard. They also had a Transformer with them. They are not from this world."

Rangoon was only mildly surprised by this. Ursula had mentioned that someone looking for John Silver had come to this planet. Turning towards the cave he yelled, "bring the prisoner out here!"

Some pirates snickered and called out for the cyborg to be brought. Two large, four armed aliens brought the man out, holding his hands behind his back. When they reached their captain, on kicked him in the back of the knee to bring him down before their leader. Silver gazed up at the shark like humanoid. His mechanical eye blazing and his other one narrowed. Rangoon punched him hard to the right. "Do not glare at me cyborg, or I'll take your arm and leg completely off!"

His threat did nothing to Silver, nor did he seem to mind the hit all that much. "What is it that ye want of me now Rangoon? I already told yeh that I lost the chest."

"That's not what I'm after. Some of my men met a lad yesterday that knew of our weapons..." in a flash he grabbed the man by his collar and hoisted him up to look him dead in the face. In a low. hoarse tone he asked, "who did you call thief?"

"I ain't tellin yah!" Silver snapped.

"Who was that boy?" Rangoon continued to question.

"I don't know! And even if I did, I'd rather yah disassemble me all together yah overgrown mackerel!"

A sudden beautiful voice voice rang out in the air, "oh come now Silver, you shouldn't lie." All pirates immediately pointed their weapons at a brown haired, human woman who walked out of the shadows. Her navy blue eyes narrowed at the sight of the guns and she yelled, "put those away you imbeciles, it's me!"

Rangoon roughly dropped the cyborg and waved his hand to silently command his men to lower their weapons. "Ursula, you have come at last."

The woman smirked, "of course. Can't have your men screw everything up now can I." at that, she eyed the group who had attacked Jim and Ariel the other day. They hung low and slunk back into the crowd. Ursula's smirk grew at their cowardice, then turned to face Rangoon and Silver again. The cyborg was looking at her oddly, and she instantly guessed why. "Something about me ring a bell Mr. John Silver?... My voice perhaps?"

Silver gave her a quizzical look and she laughed. Rangoon had had enough of this. "Do you know who outdid my men then witch?" he snapped.

"Of course. It was a young spacer named Jim Hawkins, and that little redheaded mermaid he knows pretty well, though she's gone through some... changes." she nodded at the kneeling man. Captain Rangoon looked down at him and sneered. It dawned on Silver that the reason Ursula seemed so familiar was that her voice was almost exactly like Ariels. In fact it it wasn't for the cruel undertone, he could've sworn it was Ariel's.

"Vixen! What have yeh done to the lass?" he growled, struggling to get to his feet but was forced back down by his jailers.

Ursula feigned an innocent face, "me? I only did what she asked. She wanted to become human in order to find you and be with your silly little son. I merely provided her with the means to do it and was rewarded with her sweet voice."

"Is she a problem now?" Rangoon inquired.

Ursula laughed haughtily, "hardly, without her voice and being under my contract she is the perfect tool to bring down Triton. Once we have his trident, we will be able to locate the rift opening chest." the disguised sea witch failed to mention that she knew Ariel had long since come into possession of the chest and had hidden it somewhere. Once that foolish mermaid failed to uphold her end of the deal and belonged to the cecaelia, she would learn the location, then have both the trident and the dimensional box.

"What do we need him fer then?" one of the pirates called out, jabbing a thumb at Silver and jilting Ursula from her thoughts.

"He is the bait, and besides, he'd make a great slave for someone with that mechanical arm of his."

Rangoon hissed in laughter, "I like your way of thinking witch. Alright, we will let him live, but tell us what the next step is."

The woman smiled wickedly, "of course..."

The two brute pirates hauled Silver back to the cave. Inside were a couple of chains welded into the wall. They allowed their captive to sit and stand, but really not move two feet beyond the them. After securing him in the shackles the two walked out and left the cyborg alone. He sat back against the moist rock and looked up at the roof of the cave. He felt he should be worried, but in truth he was very elated. Jim had actually come for him. And even better yet, Ariel had found him and the two of them had joined together. It sounded like the little fish had gotten herself into a bit of a fix, but Jimbo would sort through it doubtless. A thrill seeking, genius spacer and a feisty, quick-witted mermaid. He couldn't ask for better rescuers.

He smiled softly to himself then looked out gravely towards the gathered pirates and sea witch. "Best hurry up though Jimbo. I don't like the way tings are goin' here."

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A one eyed, lanky alien sat up from the grassy patch he had been laying on when an odd humming sound reach his tiny ears. He first looked to his fishing line and rod that he had planted in the ground. After determining that was not the source he looked ahead. Squinting, he saw what appeared to be a solar surfer coming towards him from the sea. Upon closer inspection he recognized one of its riders. Pushing himself up to his full height of 7 feet and 4 inches he waved to the boy then raced off towards the hidden R.L.S Legacy. With his long strides, it did not take long to reach the clearing Prince Erik had allowed the crew to camp at.

The place looked more homely now. Hammocks were set up in a few trees while tents stood erect that served as a mess hall and a council room. Other aliens went about their business of cooking, taking stock, or just having a noon nap. A few looked over when their tall comrade came bounding through the trees and raced up to the Lieutenant left in charge in Captain Amelia's absence. The Lieutenant, a gruff looking, furry fellow with a thick blonde mustache that clashed with his brown body fur and blue uniform, turned to the rushed alien.

"Treffin? What is it?" he huffed.

The tall guy stood straight to salute his superior. Though he had no visible mouth he was able to say in a soft, airy voice, "Sir, young Hawkins is coming up from the beach on his solar surfer."

The commander thought this strange but followed the spacer back to the beach. By then Jim had reached it and was helping a red haired girl off the hovering board. The Lieutenant choked when he saw the human girl, which drew hers and Jim's attention. "Mr. Hawkins! What is the meaning of this? Captain Amelia ordered that no humans are to know we're here!"

Jim winced, "I know sir, but she's not exactly human." He rubbed the back of his neck as the higher officer seemed to be waiting for an explanation. Ariel nudged him. He looked over and she nodded at him to go ahead and reveal what she really was. Looking back at the crowd that was gathering he sighed, "well, she's a mermaid, but that's not why we're here. I think I might know where Rangoon's ship is hiding."

Some of the aliens visibly shuddered at the mention of the infamous pirate. The Lieutenant held his large furry hands behind his back and gave Jim a very grim look then motioned for him and the girl to follow him back to camp. The boy took Ariel's hand and told her to stick close as they made their way through the foliage. He trusted the Lieutenant and Treffin well enough, but some of the crew were a bit sketchy to him, even though they had all had thorough background checks. The girl didn't protest and tried not to stare at the odd spacers.

When they reached the camp Jim was greeted by a few more crew members he had befriended on the trip to this planet. He finally introduced the redhead who tried to curtsy for them as she had seen some ladies do, but nearly toppled over if it weren't for Treffin who gently caught her. The Lieutenant ordered for Jim to follow him into the ship, but refused to let Ariel onboard. He said it was because he didn't know if Ameila trusted the girl enough.

Jim wanted to argue, but training taught him better, turning to Ariel he asked, "will you be alright out here?"

Ariel seemed unsure as she looked at the aliens who were still observing her. _"Do I have a choice?"_ she thought.

"I will look after the lady if she does not mind." Treffin offered. The girl looked all the way up into his big hazel eye and smiled. She liked this one at least. He reminded her of a blue whale. Really big, but really gentle. Turning back to Jim she nodded.

He couldn't help but grin at the odd pair before him. "Alright. Try to behave yourself." When the boys back was turned, Ariel stuck her tongue out at him.

Treffin chuckled, "I am glad young Hawkins is making friends. He called you a mermaid, is that true?" Ariel nodded. His eye twinkled in interest, "you make speak if you wish. I know you are not capable of physically producing sound, but I am proficient in reading lips."

Delighted at this prospect, the redhead babbled away to her new friend as they sat on some barrels out of everyones way. He asked her questions about life under the sea and what sort of animals lived there. The tall creature in return told her that his kind were called Garganians, and that he was rather short for his race. Treffin also let her try a purp fruit which she greatly enjoyed. Ariel was even surprised and very happy when he promised to stop fishing on this planet as well.

"If I may be so bold as to ask, why are you a human now? Is your species able to shape shift? I'm afraid my knowledge doesn't go beyond what I've heard in fairy tales." he said.

"No," Ariel mouthed. "I was changed into a human with magic. The sea witch tricked me, that is why my voice is gone."

Treffin was a bit surprised by this and kindly questioned, "is there any way to break this spell?"

The redhead looked up at him, seemingly unsure about something. She wanted to confide in this kind man, but she wasn't sure if she should. He may tell Jim and that would definitely ruin her chances of him falling for her. If she learned anything from her sisters, it was to never make a guy feel like he Has to love you. It just scares them away. But, maybe Treffin wouldn't tell, he didn't seem like the blabber mouth type, nor one to break a promise.

"Well, do you promise not to tell Jim or the others if I told you?" She asked.

This peeked the aliens curiosity more. "I can not. I will do my best to keep your secret, but IF I feel there is ever a dire situation that calls for it to be revealed, I will have to do so."

Ariel thought about that. It seemed reasonable. She would probably do the same thing if it came down to someone she knew getting hurt. Seeing as how such an occasion would be hard to come by, she told him everything. He remained quiet throughout the explanation. Not once did he look at her like she was an idiot, nor even seemed surprised. When she was finished, she felt better. Though her sisters knew the story, she wasn't the one who told it to them. It was nice to convey all her feelings over the matter and let it all out. She felt like crying now, but chose against it. She didn't want to be pitied and she certainly didn't want the rest of the crew watching her again.

"My my, that is quite a predicament. And I can see why you don't want young Hawkins knowing. He seems fond of you though. Forgive me if I seem too forward, but when you two were walking up from the beach, hand in hand, I thought you already were romantically involved." Treffin mentioned. Ariel blushed at what he just said. At the time, she had thought nothing of it because she was so unsure of these aliens. It was only now did she realize that she HAD held hands with him.

Shaking her head of such silly, girly thoughts, she turned back to Treffin, "what do you think I should do?"

"Do you love him?"

The redhead was taken back by this direct question. She thought about this for a few seconds. True, she hadn't known Jim long, but what did that matter? With all that's been going on, she felt she knew him better than she would've if he were just some regular sailor or fisherman without so much troubles. He was brave, daring, wasn't afraid to just kick back and have some fun. He was also very protective of his friends and even her. All these qualities were ones she loved about him. Though she was sure there was much more to learn about Jim, she was equally sure she wanted to be there to learn them. Realizing her answer, she blushed again and responded with a "yes."

Treffin nodded, "then continue just being you. Don't let him fall for someone you're trying to be. And I'm sure he will fall for you in return. You are a very courageous and loyal young woman. Young Hawkins, I'm sure, can see that."

A noise behind them drew their attention away. Jim and the Lieutenant were coming out of the ships captain's quarters. Both Ariel and Treffin got off the barrels and waited for the other pair to descend the bridge. It looked like things hadn't gone was well as they had hoped. Treffin asked if they had found the pirates ship. Jim shook his head.

"They have some top quality cloaking equipment. Stolen no doubt. They could be anywhere. On land, in space, maybe even in the sea. It's hard for our equipment to find them enough as it is." The Lieutenant explained. Ariel doubted they were in her ocean, but they might be hiding in the lagoon areas or rivers. Hearing this though, made their spirits drop. Just when they thought they had the pirates, those nasty cutthroats had already been way ahead of them.

A sigh drew all's attention to Jim, "I think we better head back to the castle. Don't want the captain or Erik to worry." Looking over at Ariel he asked, "ready?"

She nodded and Jim began to set up the solar surfer. Turning to Treffin, the girl thanked him for talking with her and helping her. His eye squinted in a way that made him look like he was smiling. He told her it was no trouble and to come back and see him soon if time permitted. She agreed then walked over and got on the now hovering board. Jim gave her a small smile when she managed to get on without his help. He turned back to the Lieutenant and saluted him. The hairy being bowed his head a little and backed out of the way.

"Good bye young Hawkins! And good luck Ms. Ariel!" Treffin called as they started down the trail that lead to the castle. Ariel waved to him until he was out of sight.

"What did he mean by "good luck"?" Jim asked, glancing over his shoulder at her. The redhead just smiled and shrugged at him. The spacer gave her a suspicious look, but faced forward again.

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Two figures cautiously swam to the mouth of Ursula's lair. They kept low and hid behind whatever they could. They seemed to waiting for something as they hesitated going in. When sure that no sound or movement was coming from within they made their way inside. The sea witch's garden of souls stirred as the two swam above. Again they halted as they neared the belly of the skeletal home and peeked around the corner. No one was there. Other than the souls, no one was home.

"Let's hurry up and do this." one of them said and swam into the middle.

"Wait up Urchin. This place gives me the creeps. How could Ariel stand it in here." Arista whinned as she looked around the place in horror.

Urchin shrugged. He was a bit used to places like this, and Ariel was a lot braver than her sisters. "That doesn't matter, we need to find Ursula's spell-book remember?"

"What if she notices it's gone?"

"I doubt she will. She has most of it memorized. Now help me find it or go be lookout."

Determining that helping to look would waste less time, the blonde haired mermaid helped her friend. The cove wasn't really big, but it wasn't very homey either. Cabinets filled with all sorts of creature parts littered the walls. A large ominous cauldron was smack dead center in the room. There was even a vanity in the back, towards where Ursula slept. The two checked everywhere they could, behind jars, in and under the cauldron. They even nearly tore about the bed, but no spell-book was found.

Arista then got an idea and swam back towards the entrance. Urchin called after her, "Arista? What are you doing?"

"I'm going to ask these guys." she replied and pointed to the sea-weed like creatures.

The boy rose a brow, "I don't think they want to help us."

"Only one way to find out." swallowing her fears a bit, Arista approached the garden. "Well, how 'bout it guys? Do you know where Ursula keeps her spell-book? Once we save my sister, I promise we'll use it to turn all of you back too."

The creatures moaned at her pathetically, watching the girl with their said yellow eyes. Then, they all turned and faced a vacant wall. The ones that could, stretched out as far as they could go towards it. Their moans becoming louder. The red finned mermaid followed their gaze and swam over to the wall. She didn't see what they were motioning to, but perhaps she wasn't supposed to. Using her hands she felt around for anything, or knocked in case of hollow spots.

Urchin crossed his arms, "see, they're just wasting our ti-" he stopped when Arista had pressed on a part of the wall and a hidden cabinet opened up. Urchin swam over and gaped at the shelves inside.

The girl threw him a look, "See, they did know where it was." she remarked. On the top shelf rested a large black and blue book that Urchin picked up with a grunt. It was quite heavy and felt a lot like snake skin. The boy shuddered at the feel of it, but kept his hold. Arista closed the secret cupboard and the two made their way to leave. However as they neared the mouth, they heard low voices.

"Flotsam and Jetsam!" Arista whispered in alarm.

"Hide!" Urchin said and the two swam up to hide in the pink kelp above. Just as they finished making sure they weren't sticking out, the two eels swam by right under them. The familiars hissed to each other in their own language, as they entered the larger room.

Suddenly one of the eels stopped and sniffed the air, "I sssmell sssomething." it hissed.

Its brother followed and smelt around as well, "yesss, it sssmells like dinner."

Arista clamped her hand on her mouth to keep from making any noise as they passed by again. The two eels were searching for them now. Peeking over to Urchin she found he was looking around. Probably trying to find a way to escape. As far as she could see, there weren't any. The eels were nearly directly under them. They'd notice if they tried to move anywhere. She wondered if they really would eat them. Or would they take them to Ursula instead? What would that sea witch do? Turn them into those strange creatures for her garden? If Ariel failed, then they would be stuck like that forever!

Speaking of the strange creatures, a few of them shot up at the eels and wrapped around them. They pulled the two fish down and covered most of their faces. The two squealed and wriggled to get out of the soul's grasp. Urchin quickly grabbed Arista's hand and pulled her back into the main room. From there they escaped through one of the many holes in the roof. The loud moans of the creatures and the shrieks of the eels followed them until the skeleton cove was out of sight.

"Urchin? Do you think those things will be ok?" Arista asked, looking back as he pulled her along.

"I'm sure they will. Ursula would fry those eels tails if they did anything to her "precious garden"." he replied.

The blonde relaxed and silently bid a thank you to the lost souls for helping them sneak away. Once the two reached the safety of the kelp forest they snuck in and found a spot to catch their breathe. Arista sat on the sandy floor while Urchin took a rock. Looking at his other hand he found the fruit of their efforts. Resting the spell-book on this lap, he opened it up and flipped through the pages. Some of the spells he had heard of, others he didn't even want to read too much into.

"Is there anything in there that can help?" Arista asked, swimming up to look over his shoulder.

The boy shook his head, "so far, not really. Unless you want to turn Ariel into a shark or melt the flesh off her bones."

Arista cringed, "that's not funny. Hey! There's the human spell!" Urchin stopped turning the pages and scanned through the spell. He turned the page once, when he was done with that side. The blonde haired girl ran out of patience, "well, does it say how to undo it?"

"It's supposed to wear off after how many days you asked for or it will remain permanent if you manage to fulfill the terms that were set."

"Ugh! That doesn't help!"

"I don't think Ariel wants to be a mermaid again though. We need to find something that can null the contract instead."

Arista huffed, "I don't care what she wants! For now we just need to get her out of Ursula's clutches. With this, we can always turn her back into a human and then she can go get that dumb kiss!"

"Well nothing in here seems like it's going to help... Darn! All that for nothing!" Urchin scoffed and closed the book harshly.

He was about to throw it, when the girl grabbed his arm to stop him. "Don't get rid of it just yet, we can still use some of those spells."

"What do you mean?" It was then he noticed a peculiar smile on the mermaids face. He unconsciously gulped. It was never usually good when one of the girls had that smile.

"Ariel's contract states that she had to be the one to find Silver correct?" Urchin nodded. "And Silver was captured by those alien space pirates. So really, if we find them then we can tell Ariel and she can go and find Silver where ever they are at."

"Isn't that what Ariel and her human friends are trying to do already?"

"Yes, but they don't have this!" Arista cried, taking the book out of the boys hands. She flipped madly through the pages until she seemed to find what she was looking for. "Ah-ha! See, a Finders spell. We can use this to find the pirates!"

"Are you serious?" Urchin yelled, coming up beside her to look at the page. How had he missed such an important spell?

The girl was reading the list for items needed. "The ingredients don't seem too hard to find." Closing the book before Urchin could really get a look, she then grabbed his hand, "come on! Lets go find Aquata and Andrina!"

**88888**

**IMPORTANT NOTICE:** I have come up with two different stories for this section, but I can only work on one at a time. Since I really like both ideas, I'm going to have you all vote on which one you want to see next. Eventually both will be released, but I don't like having multiple stories out at a time because I feel pressured. Here's how you vote: Go to my profile and read the summaries at the very bottom of my Info. Then, go back up to the very top and cast your vote in the poll listed there. I'll leave the poll open for a few weeks, then will release which story won and will appear after this one is completed. Please vote!

Chow!


	10. Day 3, Part II

**Spirit-** So sorry for the wait! I have been on vacation for pretty much the past month! I barely had time to write until this past week. The next chapter will probably be delayed as well since I'm moving out of my parents and to a state half-way across country to live with my friends there. Big step! Anyways, enough about me. Here is the next chapter. It deals more in Jim's feelings since the last one touched on Ariel's. Let me know if it feels rushed or something. I'm not really sure how I feel about it yet, but it's the best I can do for now.

SPECIAL THANKS to** Aggressively Hospitable, Alsarnia, Spottedleafpaw, AJtheWeird,** **and Beforethedawnbreaks** for the reviews!

Please leave comments on what you like or didn't like about this chapter and I will try to correct future mistakes!

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**Chapter NINE: **

**Dinner Guests**

**Day 3, Part II**

When Jim and Ariel arrived back at the castle, they found only B.E.N, Morph, and Sebastian waiting for them. Erik, Ameila, and Delbert had gone out once again to search the forest. Apparently one of the farmer's families had seen something. Grimsby told Jim not to worry about joining them for they would be back soon anyways. Erik was having guests over for an early dinner tonight. A group of high ranking nobles, that had good ties to the family.

Not really caring about nobles or their statuses, Jim's group decided to spend their time left in the study. Ariel gazed in wonder at all the books and scrolls on the shelves of the large room. She had seen books before in sunken ships, but not quite so many and with the inked words still legible. The girl watched as Jim went through some of the scrolls on a high shelf until he found the one he was looking for. Pulling it out from under a few others, he climbed down the ladder and went to a cleared table. B.E.N helped him unroll the large sheet of paper and put weights on the ends. Walking over, Ariel saw it was a map of what appeared to be a portion of the kingdom and some of the sea. She was amused by the sea monster sketch at the bottom of the map in the ocean. Those had been extinct for centuries.

"Uh, Jimmy, what are we doing?" the android asked.

Jim kept his eyes on the map as he answered, "I just want to see what areas haven't been covered yet. Erik and the others have searched the woods." he said, pointing to the cluster of trees. "And we know they're not on the coast line from the woods to the castle."

"Could they still be in space?"

"We thought of that. It is a possibility, they could make trips down to save fuel then go back up when they need. Or maybe they have enough fuel stowed away to keep afloat."

Ariel didn't know much about Jim's technology, but she doubted they were still in space. She didn't know how to describe it, but she just felt they were somewhere close by. However, she didn't think that would necessarily help in their quest. Looking at the map, there weren't many places left to hide. A few clusters of sand bars and rock, like the one Silver had lived at, were scattered on the map's ocean. They could be hiding there though someone would surely have spotted them by now. There were the cliffs that housed caves, and the lagoons next to them that were hard to get to with horses and chariots. More maps were laid out, each seeming more hopeless than the last as the boys poured over them.

Breathing a sigh, Ariel walked away from the table and over to the window. The sun would be setting in a few hours, her time was running out. She had two more days to get Jim to love her and find Silver. It wasn't as important to be loved to her, as it was to find their friend. Silver was like an uncle to her. She loved him like one. Having him caged and possibly hurt by those pirates made her stomach knot. She at least needed to find him. She didn't care about becoming just another part of Ursula's collection as long as he and Jim were all safe. She could talk to her father to prevent him from doing anything drastic, like handing his kingdom or trident over for her. It seemed that this was her only option.

A hand on her shoulder made her jump and spin around. Jim, B.E.N, and Morph were looking at her worriedly. "You okay Ari?" the android asked from behind the spacer. Jim, whose hand was still on her shoulder, seemed to be searching for something in her eyes.

"You're really worried about Silver aren't you?" he asked.

Ariel fought off the tears and nodded.

Jim gave her a lopsided smile, "I am too, but we'll find him. You'll see."

Morph flew over and nuzzled her check as he cooed. The redhead gave them all a smile as she petted the transformer. B.E.N suddenly wrapped them all up in a giant hug, causing Morph and Jim to laugh, while Ariel silently giggled. When the robot let go, Jim suggested they take a break from the maps. Instead he pulled out a large red book and handed it to Ariel. The red head looked at it, then at Jim questionably.

"Open it up." He encouraged. She did so and found not words, but pictures inside. Pictures of land animals she had never seen, other castles that were different from Erik's, even different looking people. "I'd thought you'd like that, since you don't know much about land. Maybe after we get Silver back, I can get you a book that has pictures of space. I'm sure one of my old textbooks is back on the ship, and that one you'll be able to keep."

She clutched the book to her and nodded vigorously at him. At that, the door to the study opened and Carlotta and Grimsby walked in. "Erik and Ameila should be arriving soon, and so should be there guests. It is requested that all should be formal for this evening."

That meant more dresses, at which Ariel made a face. Jim and B.E.N tried not to laugh when they saw it, then grimaced when Erik's advisor said, they too must get dressed up. Jim was used to wearing uniforms, since he had to at school. He didn't dislike them, but he hated fancy parties where the rich showed themselves off. However, he nodded, knowing he really didn't have a choice in the matter.

"Wonderful! If you don't mind, would you be Ms. Ariel's escort tonight for the dinner Jim? It's custom I'm afraid." Grimsby asked.

"I don't mind." It meant he got to sit with her instead of some fluttery eyed, duchess or something.

"Come along then deary, I have just the dress for you." Carlotta said, taking ahold of Ariel's arm. The redhead sighed inwardly, but put on a smile for the maid, as they left the room.

Jim, B.E.N, and Morph went to their own room to prepare. Looking through his luggage, he wondered if his school uniform would do. He hadn't really brought anything fancier than that. He was here on a mission after all. Shaking out the jacket he held it up to look at it better. It was his off-white uniform that he had worn to the re-opening of her mothers inn. He had a black one too, but he felt this would be better suited. Besides, he had worn it to all the school events, so it was comfortable and a little more homely looking now.

"Hey B.E.N, can you iron this for me? I'm going to take a bath." He asked, getting off the ground and throwing the outfit onto the bed. The android said yes, and began singing something as he picked up the garments.

A bath was already awaiting Jim when he entered the room. He hopped in and let the water ease his aching muscles. The solar surfing from earlier had been a little rough on his arms. He hadn't done it in awhile, not to mention steering with extra weight onboard was no easy task. Still, it had been fun, and he was glad Ariel had enjoyed it.

He shifted around until he could rest his head in his arms on the rim of the tub. That girl was certainly different. Most girls he'd met were either stuck up, or just really girly. The ones at his school were a lot like Amelia; highly sarcastic, cold, and ruthless. All traits he didn't exactly dislike, but were sometimes a bit too much for him. Ariel liked to joke around and have fun, even if it was a little scary. She was an adventurer like him, and he admired that. Not too many girls were ready to just go off into another world in search of someone. Knowing full well there was great danger ahead of them.

Turning back around, he tried to clear his thoughts of the redhead. He was here to find Silver. Once they found him, and arrested, or killed the pirates, they would all have to go back to their own dimension. Ariel would remain here. He would never see her again... That thought saddened him. She was becoming such a good friend. Even though she couldn't speak, he felt closer to her, then he did with anyone back at the academy. He smirked at how ridiculous that was. He had only known her for, what, three days? How can someone be so close to you after such a short amount of time?

'_Perhaps it's fate that you met.' _A voice that sounded a lot like his mother said in his head. He didn't believe in such things. You had to make your own choices in the world. No unseen force was gonna do that for you.

Deciding that was enough, he scrubbed himself clean and got out to dry. Dwelling on all of these weird feelings now only made his head hurt. He would concentrate on finding Silver and that was it. All else would unfold in time.

Walking back into his room he found B.E.N had finished and was now sitting out on the small balcony with Morph. Both were in their original forms. Since their room faced the ocean, it was unlikely anyone would see them. Jim let them have their fun as he started on polishing his scuffed and dull boots. He decided he would take his time on getting ready as dinner wouldn't start for another couple of hours.

88888

Amelia, Delbert, Jim, and B.E.N waited in their hallway before going to the dinning hall. The guests and Erik would also be arriving there shortly. For now the group was waiting for Ariel to come out of her room. Carlotta had poked her head out minutes earlier to tell them they were almost done. B.E.N made a comment about how sorry he felt for the girl. All knew by now her distaste for large, complicated dresses.

Jim looked at the robot in his human, young teen disguise. He was dressed up as well, but not too fancy. The maids had managed to find a dress shirt and navy breeches for him. His fluffy, stuck up hair was comb down to the best of their abilities. Really, he looked like a farmers boy dressed in his Sunday best, but it would do. Having refused the dress she was offered, Amelia was once again wearing a very fine, and feminine uniform. This time it was red and gold. The coat tails wrapped a little more around her to appear more dress like and her trimmings were more lace like fabric. Delbert was dressed in brown and gold to match his wife, though his attire still appeared a bit scholarly.

'_To bad Carlotta likes dressing up Ariel so much. Otherwise she might've been able to wear something more like the captain's clothes._' Jim thought.

"Here we are!" rang out the maids voice as she opened the door and guided the redhead out.

"My dear girl, you look simply stunning!" Amelia chided, walking over to her.

It was true. Instead of the pastel pink she had on at their first dinner, her dress was now a sea-foam green with pale blue trimmings. It's structure was alike that of the pink dress with a few changes. Her sleeves were short and not as puffy, and the bottom half was a little slimmer as well. Ariel's hair had been curled loosely and most of it was pinned up at the back, while a few wavy strands hung down to frame her face. A white flower made of cloth with pearls was clipped onto the right side of her head.

She smiled shyly at Amelia in thanks. The captain then turned to Jim, "Well Mr. Hawkins? You are her escort for this evening, come take her to the hall."

Jim felt like a robot at that moment. He obeyed Amelia's order and went over and took Ariel's arm to wrap it around his. Other than that he said nothing, nor did anything other than walk with the others. For some reason his brain felt like someone had fried it. One quick glance to the girl and he realized it was her fault. Why did she have to look so damn gorgeous and make him feel so strange? He thought she had looked nice in her other dinner dress, now she almost looked unearthly.

He noticed Ariel had turned to look at him, so he turned to look at her. She gave him a smile that made his ears and neck suddenly feel very hot. He quickly looked away, and hoped his whole head wasn't going red. Why? Why did this girl do such odd things to him?

'_Just remember your job here. You came here to find Silver, and that's it! Nothing else matters!_' he glanced over when Ariel had placed her other hand on his upper arm. as she stumbled Just this simple new touch made him blush again. _'__Crap!__' _This was going to be a long evening.

The group made it to the large room, where the others were waiting to sit down. After a long list of introductions, in which Jim sort of zoned out of, they were all able to take their seats. The table was full of guests. All dressed very richly, and buzzing with gossip. Unlike in the past, Jim, Ariel, and B.E.N were seated at the opposite end of the table then the prince. The spacer knew it had everything to do with ranking, and the fact that they were the youngest. He didn't hold it against Erik though. The man looked like he'd rather be seated with them, then the Lord and his wife on his right. Luckily Amelia and Delbert were stationed on his left. Jim and Ariel's company consisted of a young nobleman and his fiance, as well as the boys parents. All were old money, and looked to be the snootiest people Jim had ever seen.

Ariel fidgeted awkwardly in her seat next to the spacer. She was worried she would do something silly again like her first dinner at the castle with the fork. It made her feel worse that Sebastian and Morph had to be left in their rooms. She could really have used them to ease her nerves right about now. B.E.N was told he was not to speak unless spoken to, and would go where ever Jim went. This left the group feeling tense and unnerved as they went through the dinner courses and listened to the chatter.

Something one of Lords said, caught everyone's attention, "It is entirely improper for a woman to be a captain!"

Silence followed. Obviously the remark had been made towards Amelia who did not seem phased in the least. She eyed the man, taking in his bulky stomach, powdered wig, and frilly attire. He looked like he hadn't done an ounce of real work a in his life. Jim knew Amelia hated his type. "Well, we can't leave everything to the men now can we?" she asked, directing the question to the man's pretty petite wife.

The woman looked uncomfortable at the question, and meekly responded, "I agree with my husband. It is a woman's job to stay at home and raise the children."

The older woman seated next to Ariel sniffed, "Quite right! Being on a ship with nothing but men around you is scandalous. Not to mention, it is ludicrous for women to wear he garbs of men."

"On the contrary, if her work entitles such attire, then it would be more proper for her to wear them, instead of musing a dress." Said the young girl that was to be the older woman's daughter-in-law.

"Hold your tongue Danielle!" The woman snapped.

"Mother!" the boy whispered angrily.

Jim decided to speak up at this point. "No offense to anyone here, but Captain Amelia is the best captain I've ever been under the command of. She's strict, and fair with her crew. Like any leader should be."

All turned towards him. The older woman sniffed again, "you? You're still green boy. You can't have sailed under many captains yet. And what about you girl? Do you think it is decent of a woman to parade around like a man?" she asked, looking at Ariel.

"Lady Adalia, Ms. Ariel is mute I'm afraid." Erik stated, trying to come to the girl's rescue. It didn't work.

"Hmph, that doesn't mean the girl doesn't have an opinion." She rounded back onto the redhead. "Well?"

Ariel fidgeted under all the stares but then pointed to Amelia and smiled sweetly. She would take the feline's side any day. Amelia had been kind to her, and was a very respectful woman. Her choice did not seem to please Lady Adalia though, nor a few others at the table. They all gave her looks that made her feel like an ignorant child. However, all her friends gave her a smile back. They were all that really mattered to her.

Grimsby cleared his throat and tried to change the subject, "What do you all think about the rumor of these new pirates?"

The boy, Conal, replied, "Haven't heard nor seen much about them, but we do live more inland then you and your highness."

The conversation droned on. Lady Adalia had traded seats with her daughter-in-law. Danielle now sat next to Ariel and smiled warmly at her. "It is nice to meet you Ms. Ariel and Mr. Hawkins. I'm Danielle. I'm sorry for my mother-to-be's forwardness. She just doesn't like change all that much. Not many of the older nobles here do."

"It's fine. Amelia's heard it before, and she'll probably hear it again." Jim said before sipping his wine.

Ariel looked more closely at the girl. She had light brown hair that was braided around her head. Her chocolate eyes were outlined with a green powder to match her green dress. Though she didn't like the things, she admired how it looked on Danielle, and vaguely wondered if she looked that pretty. A light dusting of freckles littered the girls nose and cheeks.

'_She seems nice. She might be around Aquata's age._' Ariel thought as she returned the smile.

"Where are you from Ariel? It's alright if I call you that right?"

The redhead nodded, then pointed out the window to the sea before thinking of what she was doing. Inwardly she cringed. Others weren't supposed to know what she actually was. Thankfully, Danielle didn't seem to get the literal meaning of her indication though.

"From across the sea? How lovely!"

"Yeah, she, uh, came with me and Captain Amelia." Jim quickly explained.

"Captain Amelia and I." the lady corrected.

"Whatever."

A sudden pain shot up his leg. Ariel had kicked him under the table for his rudeness. When he looked over at her, which was now easier to do, he saw she was giving him a dirty look before turning back to Danielle and smiling sweetly. The girl had covered her mouth to try and suppress her giggle. She had guessed what had transpired between the two and found it amusing. Jim held back his grumble, but did apologize. He had, after all, been taught better.

"It's alright." Danielle said, still holding back from giggling. "You two must be pretty close. Are you courting each other?"

Jim went red while Ariel looked quizzically at the girl, not understanding. It was now B.E.N's turn to hold in a laugh... which he failed miserably at. Thankfully he wasn't so loud as to draw the rest of the party's attention. The spacer shot him a look before replying.

"No, we're not. We're just friends." It didn't seem right saying that, but he ignored the feeling.

Ariel had suddenly found her glass very interesting. Though Jim missed the slight crestfallen look in her eyes, it had not gone unnoticed by Danielle. She gave the redhead a sorrowful look, knowing that the girl didn't feel the same way as Jim apparently.

Music reached their ears and they all turned to see a small band of musicians. They must have appeared just as everyone was getting done with their second course. The music was so soft and elegant that some of the guests began to sway to it. An idea struck the brunette and she looked over at Jim with a grin. "Jim, why don't you ask Ariel to dance?"

"... Huh? Wait, what?" He asked, at first not hearing her, then not believing her.

"You heard me. Be a gentleman and ask her. You are her escort this evening are you not?" She asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Both girls were now looking at him. He looked at Ariel and her shy, but hopeful expression. She hadn't had the chance to try dancing with her new legs yet, and was yearning to. He knew how to dance thanks to his etiquette classes, but had never truly danced so formally with anyone other than his classmates. Not to mention the prospect of dancing right now, in this room, with these people watching, was doing nothing for his nerves.

'_This is stupid! So what if you don't dance as well as these rich snobs? Not like you're ever going to see them again. And Ariel's never danced before, so she won't know if you miss a step._' he inwardly fought with himself. Looking back at Ariel, he felt even more unsure.

"... Uh..." was all his genius-self could come up with.

"Well if you won't dance with her, then I hope she will do me the honor?" came a voice behind them. Erik had walked over and was now offering his hand to the girl. She nodded as she excepted it and the prince glided her out to the center so they would have more room. Amelia and Delbert soon joined them, as did a few other couples.

Danielle looked over and saw Jim now had a sour look on his face. Again she had to hide her smile behind her hand as she mentally thought, '_The early bird gets the worm, Jim.'_

Boy, did he know it now. Mentally he was kicking himself for missing his chance to make Ariel happy. Erik was now doing that, and the worst thing was, they both looked great together. The dance was a simple waltz. All couples had enough space between them to twirl their partners around and move about. Ariel fumbled every now and then, but Erik didn't seem to mind and only helped her as he lead on. She looked like she was having a lot of fun.

Jim turned back to his plate. He had a sinking feeling in his stomach. Perhaps Erik would get his mystery woman after all. Once Jim left, Ariel and him could start a life together, that is if Ariel remained human. They would be wonderful leaders for this country. The redhead would certainly liven things up though.

The music ended, and a knew song played, but all guests went back to their seats for the main course. The spacer put a smile on for Ariel when she sat back down next to him. She was practically beaming at him, causing him to chuckle. Even if it wasn't him that made her this happy, he was glad she was. Her earlier mood when they had returned to the castle had worried him, but she seemed fine now.

The main course was presented, and the two were relieved it was roasted duck. Ariel only knew seagulls and pelicans, so she didn't mind trying this dish out. It was easier to eat then fish, even if she hadn't personally known them.

The talk at the table was light now. Varying from he weather, to neighboring kingdoms, and other such topics. The two youngest members engaged in a chat with Danielle and Conal. It was a good distraction for Jim from his earlier thoughts. Conal told them about their part of the country and how he and his fiance met. They were due to marry in two months. Danielle invited Ariel and Jim, but both sadly declined. Neither really knew where they would be in that time. Jim was hoping it wouldn't take that long to find Silver, and Ariel knew she'd either be in Ursula's clutches, back in Atlantica, or in space. When the couple asked more about the two's homes, it got a little uncomfortable. For one, Ariel didn't like lying to these nice people, and Jim wasn't too sure how much he should say.

Thankfully dessert arrived and the subject changed to that, as Ariel had never had custard before. Jim was worried about that, but the couple didn't seem surprised. Apparently it wasn't a vastly known dish, or one easily attainable on this planet. The redhead couldn't finish it as it was too rich for her, but hid the rest in her napkin. She slowly mouthed the words, "For Morph" to Jim. He thought it sweet of her, but knew such a squishy food would not last well wrapped up in a napkin. Still, he let her try.

"Well, ladies and gentlemen, it has been a pleasure having you all here this evening. Dinner has now come to an end. Those of you staying the night will be shown to your guest rooms. For the rest of you, your carriages have been prepared and are waiting." Grimsby announced as he rose from his seat.

Everyone else got up as well. Unfortunately, Conal and Danielle would be leaving to stay at Conal's parent's summer home a few miles away. They said good-bye to them, and hoped to see them again before they sailed home. The two weren't sure how likely that would be, but hoped so too. Finally they headed to their rooms. The remaining guests were staying in a separate wing then the spacers and Ariel. Mostly this was so Amelia, Delbert, and B.E.N could walk around their area without their disguises.

"That was a lovely evening, wasnt it?" the doctor asked, straightening his jacket.

"All but that moment of thick-headed-ness about women, I would say so." Amelia agreed.

B.E.N threw his arm around the captain. "Don't sweat the small stuff Captain. We all know you can kick any man's butt any day!"

Amelia gave him a look to remove his arm, which he did so, laughing nervously. "I don't know about any man, but certainly those particular men I could do in."

"It wasn't so much the men as the women though. Especially that Lady Adalia." Delbert pointed out.

"Hm, yes. Though that Danielle girl was charming enough." Amelia turned to the younger members of their party. "Wouldn't you say?"

Ariel nodded her head vigorously while Jim replied with a simple, "yeah."

"Well, we'll see you all tomorrow morning. Good night everyone." Delbert said when they reached his and Amelia's room. Everyone wished each other a good night before entering their own quarters as well.

Jim was practically attacked by Morph when he and B.E.N opened the door to their room. The pink blob zoomed over and began licking Jim's face fiercely. The boy laughed and pet the little transformer, in hopes of calming him done. He even gave the little guy Ariel's left over custard, which was starting to soak through the napkin. The little guy gobbled it up, but was still much to hyper for them to go to sleep.

Deciding he needed to let Morph get some air and burn all that energy, Jim took him down and out to the courtyard after he changed into more comfortable clothing. The little blob whirled around him, chuckling and chirping happily. The night air was cool and the sea breeze felt nice. It brought the salty smell of brine over the cliff and to them. Jim inhaled deeply. He enjoyed the smell. Sitting up on the three foot wall he looked out over the dark ocean that was lit only by the light of the waxing moon. Vaguely, he wondered what it was really like to live in the sea. He had only seen some of it's occupants by night, but it must be a very colorful sight in the daytime.

He thought about asking Ariel, and looked up towards the castle. In a window, facing the courtyard he saw the girl was already in her pink nightgown and was brushing the curls out of her hair with a fork again. He smiled when he saw that. She was so weird, but in an amusing way. He wondered when she had managed to sneak a fork away, and how long she been brushing her hair with it.

"You look happy." came a voice that surprised both Morph and Jim. They turned to see Erik, with his dog Max, come into the yard. He too had changed clothes.

"Hey your highness." Jim said in a mocking tone with a smirk.

Erik made a face at him, but then rolled his eyes and smiled. "I guess I deserved that. Sorry for not talking with you much at dinner."

"You have obligations just like the rest of us." Jim said with a shrug. "Must suck though."

"It does, but not always. It means people actually listen to me and my ideas. They wouldn't give me the time of day if I was anyone else." he pointed out as she joined Jim at the wall. Max and Morph were now playing with each other in the grass. The little blob had turned into a mini version of the dog.

"Guess that's true." Jim replied.

Erik looked up and saw Ariel in the window as well. A knowing smile grew on his face as he turned back to his friend. "You and Ariel seem to be getting along really well."

Jim snapped his head towards the prince with a look that said, "don't start."

This only caused Erik to laugh, "I'm not really teasing you... Well a little, but in all seriousness is there something going on there?"

_'No.' _"I don't know." Damn his traitor mouth!

"She seems to like you."

_'I doubt it.'_ "You think so?"

"Sure. You can tell when she looks at you... do you like her?"

_'Of course not!_' ... "I'm not sure." Jim confessed, as he turned back to stare at the ocean. "But even if I did, I couldn't be with her. I'm from a different world, heck, a different dimension even!"

"How do you know she isn't willing to go with you?" Erik asked.

Jim sighed, "I would never ask her to leave her home world. Especially if I'm not 100 percent sure of my feelings."

Erik nodded in understanding. It was a lot to ask of someone even if you did truly love them. To the prince, and everyone else he had asked though, Jim did have feelings for the redhead. He was just so fixed on the fact that it Might be a doomed relationship, that he refused to allow himself to fall in love with her. There was that, and Delbert had mentioned that his father had walked out on him and his mother when he was young. This didn't help the young spacer's view on love at all.

Turning from his leaning position on the wall, Erik looked out at the ocean. He had pretty much given up on finding his mystery woman for now. What with these social events and those pirates, he just hadn't the time to continue his quest. However, he didn't want Jim to miss out on his chance at getting the girl too. He wondered if there was anything he could do to push the younger boy in the right direction. A plan began to form in his head as he thought about it.

He smiled, then whistled for Max. Jim looked over at him unexpectedly. "I think I'll turn in for the night. There's something I need to work on. Don't stay up too late Jim!"

"Okay?" Jim responded, not really sure what the prince meant by that. Said man and his dog soon disappeared from view. Jim sighed again and jumped off the wall. Erik was up to something, but it appeared he would have to wait to find out what. He hated that.

Taking one last look at the sea, he then called out to his pet. "Come on Morph. I'm getting tired." The blob cooed sadly, but followed his owner back inside the castle.

**88888**

Chow!


End file.
